Starting at position 5 at the end of the match against Turkey, Victor Wembanyama started at position 4, with Rudy Gobert in the paint. A first association that has already created sparks.
The first match of preparation for the Olympic Games of the French team against Turkey was “un Wemby game“, said his captain Nicolas Batum after Victor Wembanyama’s brilliant performance on Wednesday in Rouen.
The new star of the Blues was the best player in this demonstration against the Turks (96-46), scoring 24 points, including several impressive alley-oops, in addition to his six rebounds and four assists.
Gobert “felt very good with Wembanyama”
«The alley-oop is a weapon that is quite interesting, Batum said after the meeting. Wembanyama was imposing in defense, in attack he varied between inside and outside, it’s something we’ve never seen in the French team. He’s a superb asset to add whether at position four or five.»
Dominant on both sides of the court, “Wemby” (twenty years old, 2.24 m) started at the power forward position, alongside pure pivot Rudy Gobert (32 years old, 2.16 m), forming an extraordinary racket in defense and skillful in attack.
Initially a passer, the San Antonio Spurs interior then occupied the pivot position and scored the majority of his points.I felt very good, Wembanyama commented. (With Rudy Gobert) We can expect a lot of fun. We experiment, and the goal is to build without wasting time.»
The first Frenchman to be selected as number 1 in the draft – last year – Wembanyama was also pleased with his team’s solid defense: “We met the coach’s expectations, we started in the right way to build and be ready for D-day.»
Regarding alley-oops, “in Fiba basketball (…) it is a force that must be exploited to the full, we used it well today, almost a little too much” replied the prodigy.
