PUTNAM — When Hamidou Diallo first arrived in Putnam as a sophomore he was a scrawny 6-foot, 2-inch shooting guard with loads of potential. Fast forward four years and he is now the captain of the Kentucky Wildcats as he enters his first full year on campus in Lexington. Diallo was recently named team captain by head coach John Calipari.

Tom Espinosa, the head coach at Putnam Science Academy, saw Diallo transform from a young kid into a man saying, “During his time here at Putnam, Hami developed on and off the court. He was a pleasure to coach and everyone here at PSA is extremely proud of this most recent accomplishment.”

During Diallo’s time at Putnam Science he went from someone who had no scholarship offers to someone who had offers from many of the top basketball programs in the country. His first offer came from local school, Fairfield University during his sophomore year. By the end his time in Putnam he had narrowed his choices down to UConn, Indiana, Arizona, Kansas, Syracuse and Kentucky where he ultimately ended up. 

Diallo, who enrolled at Kentucky last January, had a head start on all his current freshman teammates as they did not arrive on campus until this past summer. Diallo was able to soak in the coaching from Calipari and learn from former Wildcat guards Malik Monk, De’Aaron Fox, and Isaiah Briscoe. Now with all three in the NBA the baton was handed off to Diallo to lead the next group of Wildcats. 

Along with Diallo, the Wildcats boast one of the best recruiting classes, according to various scouting services. They secured commits from forwards Kevin Knox and Jarred Vanderbilt as well as point guard Quade Green to name a few. 

It is now up to Diallo and returning forward Wenyan Gabriel to lead the young, but talented Wildcats to another National Championship.