World Cup Experience Could Help France At The Olympics In Tokyo

The France basketball team became a potent force to reckon with last summer at the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019 in China and reached the podium, providing glimpse of hope to go all out next year at the Olympic in Tokyo.

The Les Bleus left the Far East with much to think about, including a dramatic 89-79 win against the two-time defending champions USA in the Quarter-Finals in Dongguan.

Speaking on how the second episode of FIBA’S Run Back program went, France center Rudy Gobert said: "When you're a kid, growing up in France, it's one of the things that you picture yourself, like in 10, 15 years, you picture yourself playing the U.S. and hopefully winning. "For me, personally, it was a dream since I was a kid, so it was pretty crazy to be able to accomplish that. "We were on a mission. You could feel it the day before when we were on the plane. The atmosphere was different. You could tell that it was a game that we did not want to lose and you could tell that we all were aware of the opportunity we had in front of us. And we were all able to make ourselves better, through motivation to push ourselves to a higher level.

Gobert teammates Nicolas Batum and Amath M'Baye, also believes the Olympics could be their chance to showcase the stuff they are made of by shocking the world. The United States had just lost four defeats in a World Cup setting since 2000 before going up to France.

Nicolas Batum said: "We knew we had a chance for a big upset, who went up against the USA's Kemba Walker, his former Charlotte Hornets teammate. "I played with Kemba, so, we played against all of those players and we know them. We were not impressed. We respected them but the basketball world has changed from 20 years ago. "We came to show them, 'We're not scared of you. Okay, you're good, you have a ton of NBA players that are superstars,' but we knew we had a chance. We just went out there to try and win the game and to play good basketball. "Unless it's LeBron James or Michael Jordan, I'm not really impressed by anybody," M'Baye said. "It was not us thinking, 'Oh my god, we're playing against the USA.' It was more about us trying to accomplish our mission.

The 31-year old Batum has played in the NBA since 2008, spending several years with the Portland Trail Blazers before joining Charlotte in 2015, while Gobert 27, has been one of the best centers in the NBA as a member of the Utah Jazz, the team that drafted him in 2013. M'Baye 30, who has been competing with Pinar Karsiyaka in Turkey this season, is a former college player at Wyoming and Oklahoma. He has gone up against top American talents on numerous occasions.

The three Les Bleus stars relish the prospect of playing against the USA.

M’Baye said: "The focus level was super high, not just because we were playing the United States but because we were on the road to achieving our goal and to keep moving forward in the competition.

While Batum said: "The main goal was to be dominant on defense. "We had Rudy with us in the paint and we had all the guys around had to take some pressure off Evan (Fournier) and Nando (De Colo) so that's why Frank (Ntilikina), Amath and I had to (defend) on the perimeter."

However, the USA's Donovan Mitchell, Gobert's teammate in Utah, was excellent with 29 points.

Batum added: "We knew one guy would take off for sure. "Donovan had a good game but we had to control Kemba, and we did.

Walker was just 2-of-9 from the field and finished with 10 points. The game was close from the start, though France went from leading by several points in the third quarter to trailing in the fourth. The USA went on an 18-5 run bridging the quarters to lead 72-65.

M'Baye said: "We all knew they were going to make a run at some point. Batum added: "We had to control the rebounds, relax and not panic.

Les Bleus continued to play hard in those difficult moments and especially on defense. On offense, they were rescued by the bright young talent, Frank Ntilikina. With 6:44 remaining and the USA leading 74-69, he went hard to the basket and scored and then with 4:35 left, he drilled a game-tying three-pointer. From the wing with 2:16 remaining, he threw in a three-point dagger to extend France's advantage to 83-76

Batum said: "That was a big statement game for him. "To hit two shots in the clutch, against Kemba - one of the best point guards in the league. Frank really introduced himself to the world. That was the perfect stage for him.

Gobert said: "I was really happy for him. "The first few years in the league, he hadn't proved what he wanted to prove and I told him that game (against the USA) was a big opportunity to show what he could do, that he could play with those guys, we couldn't have won without him.

France challenges ahead are to keep the momentum, or even build on it. The French proved once again they were good enough to match with the best at World Cup for the second straight time. They have enjoyed success at FIBA EuroBaskets in the past decade, too. Batum was in teams that reached the Final of EuroBasket 2011, won EuroBasket 2013 and, with Gobert on the team as well, finished third as hosts of EuroBasket 2015.

However, France has seen the Olympic eluded them since 2000, when they claimed a medal last. While Les Bleus lost in the quarter finals in both London and Rio de Janeiro in 2012 and 2016 respectively.

Having seen the effect of the coronavirus that have forced the supposed 2020 summer games in Tokyo shifted to 2021, can Batum, Gobert along with linchpins Evan Fournier and Nando de Colo finally satisfy their hunger for an Olympic medal? Could Japan be the next stage for Ntilikina to shine for his country?

Batum said: "It's so different, with only 12 teams. "I've done it twice, London and Rio, and it's the only thing I'm missing with the national team. One thing we talked about after that game with Nando, we just beat a super team of the U.S. We're going to have to be extra extra extra motivated and focused to beat them in Tokyo. To get a medal in the Olympics is the main goal and we never know what can happen. "I think it's about us," Gobert said. "I think they're (USA) going to really try to bring some guys that weren't there last summer, some guys that are more experienced in the FIBA game. But I think it's about the way we're going to prepare mentally, physically. The window is always short, but with the closeness we have in the group. All of those moments we had, the good ones, the bad ones as a group last summer, they are really going to help us in the future. Overall, I think it was a great experience for our group.

France as predicted would go along way at the Olympics come next year in Tokyo.

 

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