Moussa Diabate reveals which veteran helped him stay patient

Aug. 26, 2026, 4:51 p.m. ET

Charlotte Hornets center Moussa Diabate became a starter last season after limited appearances in his first two years.Diabate credited veteran Taj Gibson for advising him to “keep on showing up” while waiting for his opportunity.He averaged 7.9 points and 8.7 rebounds per game last season, becoming one of the league’s top offensive rebounders.

Moussa Diabate of the Charlotte Hornets was one of the NBA’s best breakout stories last season, as the Frenchman earned a starting role at center and didn’t look back. Throughout the first two years of his career with the Los Angeles Clippers, Diabate had made only 33 appearances after being selected No. 43 overall in the 2022 NBA Draft.

All that changed, however, when Diabate arrived in Charlotte. In his first season with the Hornets, Diabate averaged 17.5 minutes per game and made 71 appearances. Those numbers went up last season, as Diabate played 73 games, made 47 starts and averaged 26 minutes per game. In those minutes, Diabate tallied 7.9 points, 8.7 rebounds, 1.9 assists, 0.8 steals and one block per game. Diabate won the NBA’s Hustle Award and finished the year as one of the league’s best offensive rebounders, averaging 3.7 per contest.

In a recent podcast appearance, Diabate shared which veteran helped him remain patient before he made his big breakthrough. “That’s something that Taj (Gibson) kept on telling me: ‘Keep on showing up,'” said Diabate.

“There’s no such thing as right timing. You don’t know exactly when it’s going to happen, but if you keep on showing up, one of them days it’s going to happen. So it’s like, you’ve got to keep showing up and give everything you have and just leave it to God after that.”

Gibson, a 17-year NBA veteran, is now 41 years old and spent one season with the Hornets during the 2024-25 campaign.

Need a news break? Check out the all new PLAY hub with puzzles, games and more!

For more NBA content, tune in to the BasketBaltes podcast:

https://www.youtube.com/@BasketBaltes/videos

https://www.instagram.com/basketbaltes/