” They have one of the best centers in the world. Well… two of them. » Jordi Fernandez is aware of the very big piece which her team will tackle next night in Las Vegas (at 4:30 a.m. French time). In addition to Joel Embiid and Anthony Davis, she will have to face Stephen Curry, LeBron James, Anthony Edwards…
Canada and the United States, which Dillon Brooks is not afraid of, begin their preparations for the Paris Olympic Games. The experience is cool because of the scene, isn't it? “, asks the Canadian coach when he meets an American team beaten by his troops during the match for 3rd place at the World Cup.
In the Olympic context this time, and facing a team much stronger than his own, Jordi Fernandez shows his intentions: ” Being the most physical team and running the most, our physical condition is important. As you can see, our players work very hard. We have 17 days to arrive in the best possible shape. »
A good way to remind people that the Games start in more than two weeks, and that this match is only a preparation game. 7th nation in the FIBA rankingCanada has every intention of winning all its matches between now and then. But that doesn't mean that ” to pull on my players' rope. We have a plan, we have to follow it. It wouldn't make sense to play someone for 30 minutes. »
Nervousness in the air
Steve Kerr is probably in the same mood, even though he'll be without Kevin Durant and therefore Kawhi Leonard. Both teams have a deep enough pool of players to rotate tonight and start clearing rotations. After all, it's just an exhibition game, even if Shai Gilgeous-Alexander doesn't hide the fact that, regardless of the opponent, he and his teammates are likely to be nervous.
“ I might dribble the ball onto my foot on the first action “, the Thunder superstar confides bluntly. One of the stakes of this meeting and another potential confrontation in Paris is that of size. With Kelly Olynyk and Dwight Powell in particular, Canada seems not to have the weapons to fight with the opposing racket.
“ It's a good challenge for us. We're going to run a lot. That's how we're going to do it. And you know, we're young, we've trained very well and we're ready to play. “, warns the local coach who says he has a lot of respect for the opposing team: ” They are number 1, this work awaits us. In the future, we will occupy this first place. We are eager to face them. »
