When the Denver Nuggets signed Alpha Diallo this summer, many probably thought the 29-year-old rookie would be an afterthought in the rotation. But the former EuroLeague's best defender has been a breakout star of the Nuggets' preseason by showing what a real top-notch "menace" of a defender looks like. It won't take long for him to get a chance to prove his merit in the regular season, as he should be deployed in perhaps his toughest assignment of the season in Game 1 against Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Oklahoma City Thunder.
At least that's the hope from my point of view. SGA's already off to a hot start, putting up 32 points on 13-for-27 shooting against the defending Western Conference Champion San Antonio Spurs. The two-time defending MVP is one of the toughest players in the whole league to stop, so Nuggets fans will get a great idea of just how good Diallo really is when he gets his chance to be the SGA stopper.
Diallo is the best option to slow down SGA
Nuggets head coach David Adelman needs to get Diallo out on SGA early. Diallo is one of the most exciting additions to the Nuggets this year, and he already flashed a few of the reasons why in the preseason.
He got off to a roaring start against the Utah Jazz when he forced an 8-second backcourt violation by picking up the primary ball handler on the inbound pass. I can't remember the last time a Nugget did that. If he can apply that sort of pressure against SGA, it'll disrupt the Thunder from getting set up in their half-court game.
Diallo led the Nuggets with 1.6 steals per game in the preseason, and his quick hands can challenge Alexander. Diallo is always active with his hands, and he can create deflections. I think his defensive style could even get under SGA's skin and throw him off his game even more.
Of course, this is all predicated on Adelman using his best defender on the reigning MVP. But this is exactly why the Nuggets sought out Diallo, and it just wouldn't make sense not to see what they've got under the hood in the opening quarter of the opening game of the year. And it would really set the tone of the game early.
The Nuggets can't be afraid to try it out. Diallo did a fantastic job against Luke Doncic in the final preseason game against the Los Angeles Lakers. As long as Diallo is surrounded by Nikola Jokic and DeMar DeRozan as part of that lineup group, his offense doesn't need to be worried about. I hope we get to see this on opening night. It would be awesome to see SGA have an off night because of the "menace" Diallo.
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