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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowThe Washington Wizards moved up one spot in the NBA Draft on Thursday night, swapping lottery picks with the Indiana Pacers and ending up with Bilal Coulibaly of France.
The Pacers had the No. 7 pick and Washington was at No. 8, but after Indiana took Coulibaly and the Wizards selected Jarace Walker of Houston, Commissioner Adam Silver announced the teams were exchanging the picks in a trade to be finalized later.
Coulibaly spent the past season with Boulogne-Levallois of the French league—the same team as top overall pick Victor Wembanyama, who was taken by the San Antonio Spurs. The 6-foot-8 Coulibaly turns 19 next month.
The 6-foot-7 Walker was part of a Houston team that was a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament this year. He averaged 6.8 rebounds, 1.8 assists, and 1.3 steals per game as a freshman before entering the draft.
With their second first-round pick, at No. 26, the Pacers drafted Ben Sheppard, a 6-foot-6 guard from Belmont University in Nashville. As a senior, Sheppard averaged 18.8 points, 5.2 rebounds, 2.9 assists, and 1.4 steals.
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The Pacers are the very definition of bottom feeders.