Curtis’ Zoom Diallo dedicates championship win to his dad, who is fighting in hospital
Zoom Diallo hugged his mom tight at midcourt after Curtis won the Class 4A state championship against Olympia on Saturday night at the Tacoma Dome.
“I did it for dad,” he told her, overcome with emotion.
On Friday, Diallo’s dad, Siaka Diallo, was admitted to a hospital after his blood pressure spiked. He’s experiencing kidney failure, according to Diallo. His biggest fan wasn’t able to watch his son play in Friday’s semifinal or Saturday’s championship game.
“My dad’s my No. 1 supporter,” Diallo said. “I love that guy. He’s helped me throughout my basketball journey. I’m the reason who I am because of him. The fact that he wasn’t here really hurt me. I did it for him. We talked about it and I told him I was gonna do it for him.”
Diallo surely made his dad proud. He was brilliant in Curtis’ championship win, pouring in a game-high 21 points to seal back-to-back state titles for the Vikings.
“He played through some stuff tonight,” said Curtis coach Tim Kelly. “I’m really proud of the way he stepped up. Not everybody would’ve done that tonight.”
Diallo said his dad was on his mind the entire game.
“Before today’s game, I went to go see him, and he just told me to put on a show for him,” Diallo said. “I felt like I did that, I was thinking about him throughout the whole day.”
This story was originally published March 4, 2023 at 11:32 PM with the headline "Curtis’ Zoom Diallo dedicates championship win to his dad, who is fighting in hospital."
