- Details
- Category: Current Issue
Diarra joins
elite 1,000-
point club
It came rather quietly, not with a big dunk or a long 3-pointer or a contested buzzer-beating jumper.
But the 1,000th point of Hassan Diarra’s career, registered on a first-half free throw on Dec. 14, was nonetheless quite significant.
Diarra, the face of the Putnam Science Academy basketball program, became just the third player in school history to surpass the mark, joining Hamidou Diallo (1,415) and Dayshon “Scoochie” Smith (1,010).
“It’s a blessing. I’m totally grateful for it, to be in the position to be able to do it,” said Diarra, who has 1,082 through 17 games this season. “Coaches, my teammates, they help me throughout the process, pushing me every day in practice, helping me get better and to where I want to be. So to score 1,000 points, it really is a blessing and I am so grateful.”
That he hit the milestone while playing in an NBA arena in his native New York City made it even more special.
“For it to happen at Barclays Center, on an NBA court, man, that’s another blessing,” Diarra said. “My mom got to see it. I made the free throw and they stopped the game a little bit and announced it. It was just crazy. It was surreal.”
Granted, PSA has most players for just their postgrad year, limiting the number of guys who can get to 1,000 points. Diarra has been at the school for his junior, senior, and now postgrad years. But, considering he didn’t play regular minutes as a junior, and is now just halfway through his PG year, “in my eyes, he’s done it in two years,” said teammate Marty Silvera. “The first year he was here, he was playing the last four, five minutes. You’re not going to have 24 points in four, five minutes.”
Also take into account that he has played with a lot of capable scorers across his years (including Silvera, who scored his 1,000th point during his junior year at Doherty High in Worcester), yet he has become the lead dog.
“He’s a real bucket,” Silvera said. “He only takes, what, 10 shots a game maybe? Playing with the guys he’s played with, we all can score. It just shows how consistent he is.”
PSA coach Tom Espinosa honored Diarra prior to the team’s home game on Jan. 8, announcing the feat to the crowd and presenting Diarra with a ball recognizing it.
“Hassan is a special player and a special kid,” Espinosa said. “We’ve had great fortune to have a rich history here and to be the third guy to score 1,000 points is pretty special. He’s already passed one of my all-time favorites, Scoochie Smith, and now he’s only behind an NBA player in Hamidou Diallo.”
PSA has 20 regular season games remaining, then as many as five possible games in the postseason, but more likely four because of a bye in the national tournament bracket. Diarra would need to average a shade more than 14.5 points in 24 games to take over the top spot. He is averaging 14.8 this season.
“It was always a goal of mine to reach 1,000 points in high school,” Diarra said. “Now, yeah, (being the all-time leader) is something I want to do. I talked to Hami last night and told him that I’m chasing him and getting him.”
Stephen Nalbandian
Sports Information Director
Putnam Science Academy
..