Basketball star returns home to give back
»»BY RYAN KELLEY
One of LeFrak City’s own returned
home to give back
to his community this
summer after he made it to basketball’s
biggest stage.
Hamidou Diallo, who was drafted
to the NBA in June, held his first
annual Hamidou Diallo Community
Day at LeFrak City on Aug. 17.
Hundreds of locals gathered on the
basketball courts at Real Good Park
for a day filled with pickup basketball
games, food, music and giveaways
of NBA gear from Diallo.
Also joining in the festivities
were Diallo’s mother and brother,
who still live in the Peru building.
Diallo, a Flushing native, attended
John Bowne High School
for his freshman and sophomore
years and averaged 17.1 points,
6.6 rebounds and 2.7 assists per
game in his sophomore season. He
then transferred to Putnam Science
Academy in Connecticut where he
averaged 19 points, 6 rebounds and
3 assists per game as a senior.
The rising star was heavily recruited
by a number of Division I
colleges, and Diallo ultimately committed
to play for the University of
Kentucky. In one season with Kentucky,
Diallo averaged 10 points, 3.6
rebounds and 1.6 assists per game.
Diallo was nearly able to call
New York home once again when
the Brooklyn Nets drafted him
with the 45th pick on June 21. He
was quickly traded, however, and
signed a contract with the Oklahoma
City Thunder on July 28.
At the community day, Senator
Jose Peralta presented a proclamation
to Diallo for his efforts. Diallo
later posted on Instagram to thank
Peralta and everyone who helped
organize the event and said “it only
gets better, see you guys next year
we doing it bigger!”
PHOTOS BY NICOLE SWEET
24 OCTOBER 2018 | WWW.QNS.COM | LEFRAK CITY COURIER