PARIS – On paper, the United States appears to have a better Olympic basketball team than France.
Canada and Germany did the same, but to no avail.
If the Americans make it to Saturday’s gold medal game, they’d better be prepared to face a fierce, tough and sometimes inept French team that will be waiting for them, backed by a raucous crowd here at Bercy Arena.
France defeated Germany 73-69 on Thursday to advance to the Olympic finals. It did so in much the same way it beat a more talented Canadian team on Tuesday, outplaying its opponents and urging several players to step up at crucial moments.
The United States plays Serbia on Thursday night, with the winner advancing to the gold medal game.
NBA fans might expect Rudy Gobert and Victor Wembanya to lead the French team, but that’s not the case.
Gobert is a minor player here, getting just 5:09 of playing time against Germany after 3:41 against Canada. Gobert said it was due to finger surgery, but the French coach disputed that. The team is playing well without him.
Meanwhile, Wimby played more and caused havoc on the court due to his height of 7 feet 4 inches, but he did not shoot the ball well. He scored 11 points but succeeded in making 4 of 17 attempts. The team was unable to take advantage of him, although he managed to make two free throws with 10.2 seconds left in the game, allowing France to end the game on fouls.
But the hero was Gershon Yabusile, a 6-foot-8, 271-pound big man who had fallen out of favor with the Boston Celtics and now plays for Real Madrid in Spain. Yabusile scored 17 points, grabbed seven rebounds and played aggressively on both sides of the court.
Perhaps his partner in crime on defense was Mathias Lesort, the 6-foot-9, 256-pound Greek League player who powered his way to 10 points and four rebounds.
Isaiah Cordiner, from the Italian League, was perhaps the star, scoring 16 points and grabbing seven rebounds.
Perhaps it was the style of play that knocked the Germans and Canadians out. The defensive intensity was ridiculous. They blocked five shots and managed to steal six against Germany. The team’s physicality is beyond FIBA.
“They came out as the aggressors and they hit us in the mouth,” Canada’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander said after Tuesday’s loss to France. “They played harder. They were the aggressors on both ends of the court.”
The attack is erratic, both in passing and shooting, but it is difficult to adapt to.
The French find a way to make the game ugly and then win that way. That’s the method. That’s the system.
The project is a success, thanks to the fans singing, dancing, waving flags and beating drums. Given the colour scheme of the uniforms and the unwavering vocal support of the chants, it might as well be Allen Fieldhouse on the banks of the Seine.
It’s a combination that surprised Canada. And then surprised Germany again in one of the best basketball games you’ll ever see.
There is still a significant potential for major disruption.
Team USA will have a lot of advantages in a potential gold medal race.
But they better be prepared for a rocky battle.
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