Pro Blue: Moussa Diabate dunks on Victor Wembanyama, gets a new contract

Moussa Diabate’s breakout year continued this week with a thunderous dunk over Victor Wembanyama, and a new contract to boot. Here’s how he and other former Wolverines fared in the NBA this past week:

It was an eventful week of NBA action for the Michigan contingent in the professional ranks. The trade deadline shook up the league, and several Wolverines took part. Caris LeVert was traded, Duncan Robinson will faced added competition for minutes with Andrew Wiggins now on the Heat, and Moussa Diabate’s path to playing time got a ton easier (or did it?).

Let’s dive in and see what’s changed for a few notable Wolverines in the NBA.

Moussa Diabate gets paid

Diabate had as eventful of a week as anyone. On Friday night against the Spurs, he had arguably the highlight of his young career by dunking over Victor Wembanyama:

Dunking on Wembanyama has been incredibly rare this year. As a reward, the Hornets signed Diabate to a multi-year contract on Sunday. The terms were not disclosed, but it’s important to note this isn’t a two-way contract like what he’s been on most of his career. Moussa rewarded Charlotte’s faith in him by scoring a season-high 21 points on Monday night in Brooklyn before leaving the game early with a right eye abrasion.

Interestingly, Diabate is also deeply impacted by the NBA trade deadline . He has been the primary backup to Mark Williams, who was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers before having the trade revoked due to a failed physical. Charlotte is disputing the trade revocation, but for now it leaves Williams, the Hornets and the Lakers in limbo. Should the trade go through or the injury keep him out for a prolonged time, Diabate could be in line for significantly increased minutes.

Caris LeVert traded to the Atlanta Hawks

LeVert lived up to his journeyman name by being traded yet again this week. The 30-year-old guard was traded by the Cleveland Cavaliers to the Atlanta Hawks , along with Georges Niang, three second-round picks and two pick-swaps for De’Andre Hunter. Hunter was having a career year with the Hawks, so with the Cavaliers in the midst of a championship chase, they were looking to add more size on the wing, causing LeVert to be a casualty.

LeVert will now play for the fourth team in his career after stints with the Nets, Pacers and Cavaliers. He will also team up with former Wolverine Kobe Bufkin once Bufkin gets healthy.

Franz Wagner gets on a heater

It’s tough not to sing Wagner’s praises every single week in this article. However, he’s worthy of a special shoutout this week. In four games this week, he scored 30 or more in three of the four while shooting more than 50 percent from the field in each as well.

Most recently, Wagner poured in 37 points against LeVert’s Hawks on Monday night, while also tallying seven rebounds, three assists and two steals. He currently leads the Magic in scoring (25.4 points per game), assists (5.0), and is fourth on the team in rebounding (5.6).