Without being spared, the French team did not suffer the most perilous draw for its home Olympics. Vincent Collet's team will however have to avoid a delay in ignition in this group B.
With Germany, Brazil and Japan, this group is dense, although a hierarchy seems to be emerging with the two European selections as favourites. The German world champion will have a certain amount of pressure on his shoulders to confirm his surprise victory from last year. The Blues, for their part, arrive with few certainties following their failed World Cup, but with a new standard-bearer expected like no other player before in France: Victor Wembanyama.
FRANCE
This is the event that French basketball has been waiting for years. The French team will play the Olympics on home soil, in front of its fans, and partly in the same venue that saw it play its last home competition, Euro 2015, at the Stade Pierre-Mauroy in Villeneuve d'Ascq. This time, there will be no Pau Gasol to block the path of the Blues…
The Tricolores are, however, approaching the event as the first of a new cycle, with Victor Wembanyama as the headliner. The Spurs center will be the team leader and will be playing in his first major international competition as a senior. Will he let the pressure get to him for once? It will be particularly high, and a failure would be seen as a brutal end to the cycle after a World Cup he already missed last year.
The workforce
Leaders: Andrew Albicy (Gran Canaria), Frank Ntilikina (Partizan Belgrade), Matthew Strazel (Monaco)
Backs/wingers: Nicolas Batum (Los Angeles Clippers), Isaia Cordinier (Virtus Bologna), Bilal Coulibaly (Washington Wizards), Nando De Colo (ASVEL), Evan Fournier (without contract)
Interiors: Rudy Gobert (Minnesota Timberwolves), Mathias Lessort (Panathinaikos), Victor Wembanyama (San Antonio Spurs), Guerschon Yabusele (Real Madrid)
The coach: Vincent Collet
The star : Victor Wembanyama
Who else but the new darling of the orange ball (or even of French sport in general)? The Spurs player will be the offensive and defensive leader of the French team. That's a lot to ask for a debut at only 20 years old. But it says a lot about the expectations placed at “Wemby”. His understanding with Rudy Gobert, which could have been questionable, seems in any case to be one less worry after a rather satisfactory preparation on this point, at least defensively. The fact remains that he will need to receive enough support from outside to hope to go far…
Qualification : host country
History at the Olympics: 11e participation, best result: 2e in 1948, 2000 and 2020.
GERMANY
Third in the last Euro, then world champion, what now awaits Germany at the Olympics? Frankly attractive last summer during the World Cup, the Mannschaft can establish itself a little more as a stronghold of international basketball. It will perhaps be difficult to reproduce the feat of 2023, with a run without the slightest defeat and victories over the United States or Serbia. But the national coach Gordon Herbert, who has been through the French championship in Paris and Pau-Orthez, can rely on a virtually unchanged group since ten of the twelve World Cup players will be there. And since then, Franz Wagner has taken on responsibility and experience at Magic.
The workforce
Leaders: Maodo Lô (Olimpia Milano), Dennis Schröder (Brooklyn Nets)
Backs – wingers: Isaac Bonga (Bayern Munich), Niels Giffey (Bayern Munich), Andreas Obst (Bayern Munich), Franz Wagner (Orlando Magic), Nick Weiler-Babb (Bayern Munich)
Interiors: Oscar Da Silva (FC Barcelona), Daniel Theis (New Orleans Pelicans), Johannes Thiemann (Alba Berlin), Johannes Voigtmann (Olimpia Milano), Moritz Wagner (Orlando Magic)
The coach: Gordon Herbert
The star : Dennis Schröder
Seeing him be MVP of the World Cup was a pretty big odds. But the Nets point guard is one of those players who are more dangerous in FIBA competitions, and transcended by their national jersey. Still as whirling, he arrives at what must be the peak of his career, at 30 years old. The opportunity for a big coup, especially since he had not been able to be present in Tokyo, to his great dismay, due to an insurance problem.
Qualification : best European nation at the last World Cup
History at the Olympics: 7e participation, best result: 7e in 1992.
BRAZIL
Like Argentina, a former international powerhouse who has fallen into obscurity in recent years, Brazil is suffering from the development of basketball internationally, much more than in Central and South America. But the Seleção remains a team to be taken seriously, as evidenced by its qualification for the Riga Olympic Qualifying Tournament in early July, dominating Latvia despite being at home and fifth in the World Cup. With the indestructible Marcelinho Huertas, 41 years old (and who has extended two more years in Tenerife !) at the helm, the Brazilians will remain a team to be wary of, despite their lack of “big names” on paper.
The workforce
Leaders: Alexey Borges (Crailsheim Merlins), Elio Corazza (Corinthians), Yago dos Santos (Red Star Belgrade), Marcelinho Huertas (Tenerife), Raul Neto (without contract)
Backs/wingers: Vitor Benite (Palencia), Georginho de Paula (Franca), Didi Louzada (Flamengo), Leo Meindl (Alvark Tokyo), Gui Santos (Golden State Warriors)
Interiors: Bruno Caboclo (Partizan Belgrade), Lucas Dias (Franca), Cristiano Felício (Granada), Mãozinha Pereira (without contract)
The coach: Aleksandar Petrovic
The star : Bruno Caboclo
Yes, yes, the Bruno Caboclo who was “two years away from being ready in two years” when he was drafted by the Raptors in 2014. It even took him a little longer to fully find his place, alternating between the G-League, a fairly anonymous stint at CSP Limoges and a rather successful return to Europe at Ulm in Germany and then at Partizan. Still as athletic, he was impressive during the OQT, where he was named MVP.
Qualification : winner of the Riga Olympic Games
History at the Olympics: 17e participation, best result: 3e in 1948, 1960 and 1964
JAPAN
Still relatively unknown on the international scene, the Japanese national team is nevertheless progressing, with its squad becoming more and more open to international competition.
Paradoxically, the Japanese selection finished the last World Cup with a positive record (3 wins – 2 losses) thanks to the classification matches, notably beating Lauri Markkanen's Finland. The Japanese are counting on an atypical style of play with a lot of outside shooting (3e team that attempted the most 3-point shots at the World Cup) and a hopeful named Rui Hachimura, back in the national team.
The workforce
Leaders: Yuki Kawamura (Yokohama B-Corsairs), Yuki Togashi (Chiba Jets Funabashi), Kai Toews (Alvark Tokyo), Keisei Tominaga (Nebraska Cornhuskers)
Backs – wingers: Yudai Baba (Nagasaki Velca), Makoto Hiejima (Utsunomitya Brex), Akira Jacobs (Hawaii Rainbow Warriors), Yuta Watanabe (Chiba Jets Funabashi), Hirotaka Yoshii (Alvark Tokyo)
Interiors: Rui Hachimura (Los Angeles Lakers), Josh Hawkinson (Sun Rockers Shibuya), Hugh Watanabe (Ryukyu Golden Kings)
The coach: Tom Hovasse
The star : Rui Hachimura
The only player still in the NBA on the roster – Yuta Watanabe will return to his national championship when it resumes – Rui Hachimura carries almost all of Japan's hopes. Talented and adapted to the FIBA game, the “forward” will have the majority of the balls in attack and will have all the freedom possible to exploit them. He will also be less isolated than in the past with the naturalized rough Josh Hawkinson (21 points and 10.8 rebounds on average during the World Cup) or even the “Samurai Steph” Keisei Tominaga with his very spectacular game with Nebraska in the NCAA.
Qualification : best team in the Asian zone at the last World Cup
History at the Olympics: 8e participation, best result: 9th in 1936
The calendar
July 27, 1:30 p.m.: Germany – Japan
July 27, 5:15 p.m.: France – Brazil
July 30, 5:15 p.m.: Japan – France
July 30, 9:00 p.m.: Brazil – Germany
August 2, 11:00 a.m.: Japan – Brazil
August 2, 9:00 p.m.: France – Germany
