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The Tuscaloosa News
Inside the transformation of Alabama basketball forward Mo Dioubate
- Story byThe Tuscaloosa News
- Inside the transformation of Alabama basketball forward Mo Dioubate
From the moment Mo Dioubate stepped on the Coleman Coliseum floor for Alabama basketball's season opener against UNC-Asheville in early November, the difference was obvious.
The Crimson Tide sophomore forward was visibly bigger and stronger, and more of a presence in the paint. Better able to defend, better able to get to the rim offensively, and better able to hold his ground when battling for rebound position. Of course, it translated against the outmanned Bulldogs − Dioubate scored 11 points, grabbed seven rebounds, and even nailed a 3-pointer in only 15 minutes of action − but UNC-Asheville was no test.
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The real test would come soon enough, against the gauntlet of non-conference challenges coach Nate Oats scheduled, and in SEC play, which has been underway for three weeks. More than enough to now conclude that the 6-foot-7 Dioubate has not only passed the test, he's aced it.
The outcome, as Alabama (16-3, 5-1 SEC) enters Saturday's home game against LSU, has been a leap in both minutes and production for Dioubate.
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Dec 14, 2024; Tuscaloosa, AL, USA; Alabama forward Mouhamed Dioubate (10) drives into the lane for a shot against Creighton at Coleman Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Gary Cosby Jr.-Tuscaloosa News
Although listed at 215 pounds on the official UA roster, Dioubate told The Tuscaloosa News he's tipping the scales as heavy as 222 this season. Seven more pounds might not sound like much, but he's added more than that in muscle thanks to a reduced body-fat percentage. It took some hard work, although Dioubate admits that adding weight wasn't necessarily an offseason objective.
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"It really wasn't a goal for me. I think it's mostly just been genetics, but I did work with our strength coach, Henry (Barrera), and that's made a difference too," Dioubate said.
Although his improved physique is obvious in the upper body, he logged plenty of offseason time strengthening his legs for more explosiveness. In that respect, Dioubate said much of his work with Barrera involved more basketball-functional exercises rather than traditional means, like squats.He cut down on soda and fast food in his diet as well, relying more on a prescribed nutrition program under UA Athletics dietician Amanda Branson.
"He was never weak, but now, he's (really) strong. You can't move him," said Oats. "You look at our bigs, Cliff (Omoruyi) is obviously pretty tough and strong. (Aiden) Sherrell's a big boy, Mo D, Chris Youngblood's a strong guard. There are some guys on our team that are hard to move and he's probably at the top of that list, and I think you can see it some of these tough games, (like) A&M or Houston. When we need some toughness, his minutes have gone up."
By a lot.
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Dioubate averaged just eight minutes per game as a freshman, delivering 2.9 points and 2.4 rebounds per game. This season, despite Alabama having a deeper, more talented bench than it did a year ago, he's averaging 14 minutes with a field goal percentage of 55.6%, second only to Omoruyi. On Tuesday against Vanderbilt, he scored a career-high 22 points with 10 rebounds. And Oats is giving every indication that Dioubate is getting harder and harder to keep off the floor.
"We came in, I think, three weeks ago, he was killing everybody in practice one day, and nobody could guard him. I mean, maybe (Chris) Youngblood was the best option. He was too quick for our bigs, way too strong for our guards. Youngblood's strong, but even he struggled a little bit," Oats said. "So I came in the next day with about six new plays for him."
Dioubate has dubbed those plays the "off-road" package, and it will be a way for Alabama to generate more points at the rim.
"It's kind of like smash-mouth, not typically the way we play, but it's there, and we got it in," Oats added.
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The transformation, it appears, is still ongoing.
Tuscaloosa News columnist Chase Goodbread is also the weekly co-host of Crimson Cover TV on WVUA-23. Reach him at cgoodbread@gannett.com. Follow on X.com @chasegoodbread.
This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: Inside the transformation of Alabama basketball forward Mo Dioubate
