Tony Parker’s number retired in evening of ups and downs for French basketball

In the darkness, a long blue shirt floated skyward, bearing a white number 9 and the name “Parker.” Pyrotechnics set off as it rose slowly. There was a lot of talk about jerseys on Friday, July 12, at the LDLC Arena in Décines-Charpieu, near Lyon. Blue jerseys, in particular. With 13 days to go until the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, the French men’s and women’s basketball teams each played a warm-up match in the arena, ahead of the ceremony honoring Tony Parker, the best player in the history of French basketball.

After dreaming of a double-header against Team USA – the men’s and women’s teams – for this festive evening, the French Basketball Federation (FFBB) settled for a choice opponent: Serbia, led on the men’s side by NBA superstar Nikola Jokic, took on Les Bleues and Les Bleus on Friday as the curtain-raiser to the ceremony. And while Marine Johannès and her teammates won their match (85-63), Victor Wembanyama and his partners left the Lyon region defeated (67-79) and with a reminder: The road to an Olympic medal will be strewn with obstacles.

Following the French women’s cool-headed victory over their former bête noire (the Serbians beat them in the 2015 and 2021 European Championship finals), illustrating coach Jean-Aimé Toupane’s determination to impose an oppressive rhythm on his opponents throughout the game, the men’s match was friendly in name only.

‘It was poor from A to Z’

Opposed to the world runners-up, the French men knew the test would be perilous, given the presence of Jokic, the NBA’s MVP for the third time this year and a 2023 champion. But Les Bleus were determined to show their colors on this day of celebration for French basketball. “The blue jersey is my favorite jersey,” Wembanyama reaffirmed the day before, on the sidelines of a training session. And the world basketball phenomenon proved it once again on the floor on Friday. Back on the French team after missing the return match against world champions Germany in Montpellier (65-70 defeat), “Wemby” quickly found his feet, scoring seven of France’s first nine points (14 in total).

But Serbia soon posed serious problems for Rudy Gobert’s teammates. “Serbia is one of the best teams in the world, apart from Team USA, and I think they’re going to be particularly strong [at the Olympics],” warned France coach Vincent Collet on Thursday. We can expect some very tough opposition.” He was well served.

In the second quarter, the French had a tough time, conceding 16 points in a row. Struggling in attack, they lacked imagination, leaving too much room for Jokic and the Serbians. “It was poor from A to Z,” criticized shooting guard Evan Fournier after the game. “We’re way off the mark. We’re getting dominated, we’re not playing the way we should.” Collet said his team reacted “to the Serbians’ toughness” in the second half, but they were unable to catch up. The serene Serbians invariably pushed the French team back, highlighting their shortcomings, particularly in attack. Les Bleus will have to build on this “logical” defeat, to use Collet’s word, when the Olympic tournament begins.

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