PARIS (AP) — Victor Wembanyama stole the show with a spectacular one-handed dunk as France began its quest for the men's basketball gold medal. Paris Olympics.
As a bright sign for the future, NBA Rookie of the Year He was all smiles after a powerful two-handed dunk in a 96-46 win over Turkey on Wednesday night, scoring a game-high in points and looking good. 24 points, 6 rebounds In front of a sold-out crowd of around 5,500 in Rouen.
It was the first of six matches France will play in the run up to the Olympics, which run from July 26 to August 11.
“Victor played the 'Wenby game' – he was imposing in defence and versatile in attack, something we've never seen before from a French team,” said the captain. Nicolas Batum “This is a great asset for us and something we can utilize in a lot of situations.”
The 20-year-old San Antonio Spurs star also worked well with veteran Minnesota Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert, with whom he played for France for the first time. Gobert, 32, NBA Defensive Player of the Year Wenbanyama came in second in the voting, winning his record-tying fourth title.
“We still have work to do,” Batum said, looking ahead to the Olympics, “but having two great players (Wembanyama and Gobert) helps us a lot.”
The Washington Wizards' rookie guard also played great defense. Bilal Coulibaly.
France lost to the United States 87-82. Gold Medal Game France is not considered a favourite to win the Olympics in Tokyo, but there is hope that coach Vincent Collet's team can win gold at home. France will beat the United States, Canada, Serbia and World Champion Germany.
Last week, Wenbanyama was asked about the possibility of a France-USA final, in which he would face the likes of LeBron James and Stephen Curry.
” I can't wait to play against them“It will be a very interesting match,” he said in Paris. “As a basketball player, it's a dream to play in this match. Team USA And to all those players, all those legends.”
France's first Group B Their Olympic opponent will be the winner of a final qualifying round later this week, before facing Japan and Germany in a 12-team match in the northern city of Lille.
Basketball is hugely popular in France On the back of The rapid rise of Wembanyama And the emergence of new talent.
This year's Top two picks in the NBA draft There are Frenchmen Zachary Lizacher (Atlanta Hawks) and Alexandre Sarr (Washington Wizards), and Tijan Saloun was drafted sixth by the Charlotte Hornets.
France joined the United States They are the only country to have three players selected in the top 10 of the NBA Draft, and with Pacôme Dadier (New York Knicks) and Melvin Ajinkya (Dallas Mavericks) joining them, France has had five players selected overall.
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AP Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/2024-Paris-Olympics
