In a week, on September 1, in Cologne, Germany, the France team will begin the European Championship against the Germans.
In the meantime, the Olympic vice-champions will play a last match on August 27 in Bosnia-Herzegovina against a team that they will find in the group stage on the other side of the Rhine.
As against the Czechs on August 24, it will not be a friendly match but a duel counting for qualification for the World Cup in 2023. Winners of the Czech Republic (95-60), the Blues will be able to almost officially validate their ticket for the next Southeast Asian world in the event of new success.
A second half to show in all the basketball schools 🥵
Les Bleus win well against the Czech Republic and remain at the top of their group in these qualifications at @FIBAWC 2023 🙌 #TeamFranceBasket |
#PassionatelyBlue |
#FRACZE pic.twitter.com/4GI3LUaaoy
– French Basketball Teams (@FRABasketball) August 24, 2022
But the question of the moment is elsewhere: are the Blues, Olympic vice-champions, ready to start a Euro which promises to be hyper-raised?
The last NBA MVPs, Giannis Antetokounmpo (2019-2020), the strong Greek winger, and Nikola Jokic (2021, 2022), the Serbian pivot, will be there as will the Slovenian magician Luka Doncic.
Yes, it will be tough.
Perhaps even higher than the Olympic Games: “In Tokyo, reminds coach Vincent Collet, we needed 6 games to go to the final.
At the Euro, we will already play five in the group stage and sometimes back to back (overnight).
No, the task will not be easy.
“Like a Tour de France rider…”
To go all the way and imitate their elders from 2013 crowned European champions for the one and only time, the Blues of basketball will therefore have to be on top for two weeks.
Are they already?
“I will give you an answer from Normand that I am, replies coach Vincent Collet.
Since the end of July, we have had good preparation matches, for example against Italy, but we have also had some very bad ones which did not please me any more like against Belgium.
We are in the position of a rider who is going to take the start of the Tour de France and who believes he is ready because he has only trained for the middle mountains.
That's what a friendly match represents to me.
But how will this rider react in the high mountains, in the hors category passes when things get serious and very difficult?
We are in this position and for the moment, I do not have the answer.
Clearly, today, we are not at the sufficient level to beat the best in Europe.
But that doesn't mean we won't be tomorrow.
“Since the beginning of the preparation, the French are undefeated.
But they did not play the big names from the European continent and this invincibility is anecdotal.
Deprived of their two captains Nicolas Batum and Nando de Colo who are taking a well-deserved break before returning to the blue jersey in 2023, the French arrive at the Euros with a team that is initially rejuvenated and seriously amputated due to injuries.
Selected for the first time, the phenomenon Victor Wembanyama (2m19) is out like the other giant Moustapha Fall (2m18) who could nevertheless return before the departure for Germany.
France certainly has no shortage of tall ones (Rudy Gobert peaks at 2m16, Vincent Poirier at 2m13), but these centimeters may still be lacking a little.
"All the teams that finish on the podium of a major competition have players who measure more than 2m15", notes Vincent Collet.
This will still be the case in Berlin on September 18, whatever the poster for the final.
Catastrophic start to matches
More than regretting absences, the staff has a much more urgent concern to settle: the start of catastrophic matches.
It's been the blue trademark since the beginning of the preparation and it's not good news.
The French team is in diesel mode before heating up by showing what it is capable of, as was the case against the Czechs who were largely beaten in the end (95-60).
But it takes too long.
In front of modest opponents, it passes.
This will not be the case against Germany, Slovenia and Lithuania who are expecting it in the first round in Cologne: "We have to stop starting 'soft' because against the very big teams, it will indeed be a another story”, confesses Guerschon Yabusele.
Its captain Evan Fournier insists: “For us to have a good medal at this Euro, we have to start better.
At the start of the match against the Czechs, we do not shoot.
On the Euro, we will not always have the ability to come back like that.
Personally, I have had one of my worst matches for the France team in recent years.
To correct ourselves, it must begin with individual awareness.
We are targeted, we are reigning Olympic vice-champions, we have to show our teeth.
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And not only in the second half, which worries Vincent Collet: “The start of the match already worried us before the match against the Czechs, admits the coach.
We hoped to correct the situation, that was not the case, so we will continue to work, perhaps with the same players.
But it can also go through a change of starting five.
It's possible, to find a better balance because we don't have a very good balance at the start of the match.
What worries me the most is that we are not able to put the same intensity from the start as we put it afterwards.
We give our opponents confidence and that's not good.
We have to make progress on this.
There are a few days left for the Blues to fine-tune these final settings.
To fetch the gold in Germany that they covet at all costs.
