Tonight, all teams will be in uniform. A way for the NBA to raise awareness among Americans about voting, since there is no match scheduled for tomorrow while 335 million voters are expected at the polls to elect their new President. The opportunity, for us, to find all our French people this night.
The matches of our French:
- Wizards (Alexandre Sarr and Bilal Coulibaly) – Warriors at 1:15 a.m.
- Hawks (Zaccharie Risacher) – Celtics at 1:45 a.m.
- Rockets – Knicks (Pacôme Dadiet) at 2:45 a.m.
- Wolves (Rudy Gobert) – Hornets (Tidjane Salaün and Moussa Diabaté) at 3 a.m
- Thunder (Ousmane Dieng) – Magic at 3:15 a.m.
- Pelicans – Blazers (Rayan Rupert) at 3:30 a.m.
- Suns – Sixers (Guerschon Yabusele) at 4:15 a.m.
- Clippers (Nicolas Batum) – Spurs (Victor Wembanyama, and Sidy Cissoko?) at 4:30 am
Alexandre Sarr and Bilal Coulibaly, continue the momentum
One has been playing like the franchise player of the Wizards (how is that chauvinistic?) since the start of the season, and continues to impress. The other is gradually making his mark in the NBA, and has just established his career-high against the Heat (17 points). In short, in Washington, the official language has almost become French. So tonight, facing the Warriors probably deprived of Steph Curry and, therefore a priori more affordable, Bilal Coulibaly and Alexandre Sarr will have to continue to shine.
Zaccharie Risacher, what a bad time to go through
Tonight, the Hawks face the Celtics. Not a gift for the Falcons, since the C’s are very, very hard to maneuver. Moreover, only the Pacers managed to defeat them this season, and after overtime. Courage Zacch, with a brave heart nothing is impossible.
Pacôme Dadiet: will play? will not play?
As usual, we don’t understand much about Tom Thibodeau’s rotations. Pacôme Dadiet comes in here and there, but it’s difficult to determine if coach Thibs is really counting on him. However, our Frenchie has shown great things so far. Enough to scrape a few minutes tonight against the Rockets?
Rudy Gobert, we must crush the Hornets
Not crazy offensively since the start of the season, Rudy would be well inspired to put on a big performance for the Hornets. Come on, around fifteen points, as many rebounds and two-three blocks. There’s still plenty of room.
Tidjane Salaün and Moussa Diabaté, slowly but surely
Step by step, our two Frenchmen are starting to carve out a more or less solid place for themselves in the Hornets rotation. It’s now four games that the two have systematically entered the field, and are grabbing more and more minutes. Hoping that the trend remains the same tonight against the Wolves.
Ousmane Dieng, continue to make his mark
Ousmane Dieng is, for the moment, an important element in one (the?) of the best teams in the NBA. That’s the sentence. To compensate for the absences of Jaylin Williams and Isaiah Hartenstein, injured, Ous’ helps out at the pivot position, and provides valuable services. Fifteen minutes spent on average on the floor, and a real contribution to the Thunder’s game. It’s hard to ask for better.
Rayan Rupert, stand out from the crowd
In a Portland team that is about as bad as advertised, Rayan Rupert must show that he stands out from the crowd. A few days ago against OKC, the back had a nice peak at 14 pawns, before coming back down to Earth against the Suns. Tonight, the double R should have his minutes against the Pels, so we will still have to take advantage of them.
Guerschon Yabusele, discovering Paul George
Tonight, Paul George should play his first minutes in an official match with Philly. The opportunity for the Sixers and Guerschon Yabusele to discover the nine-time All-Star. Be careful Chonchon, before moving on from Caleb Martin to Playoff P, remember to wet your neck.
Nicolas Batum, towards a first victory at home?
Since the Clippers inaugurated the Intuit Dome, the Sailboats have not been able to win a single official game at home. A bit stupid, especially when you know that Portland has been there. So this night, against Spurs, it would be good for Nico and his friends to get things back on track.
Victor Wembanyama, regaining regularity
Irregular since the start of the season, Wemby must start to string together big performances. His physical condition and his choice of shots still raise questions, and the Alien will have to work if he wants to silence his detractors. A process that can sometimes be long, but a victory against the Clippers could be a good way to continue it.
Sidy Cissoko, we don’t really know
The Spurs like Sidy Cissoko, but it is clear that our Frenchman is for the moment a little forgotten on the San Antonio side. Sidy has played three ends of matches, for four mini minutes spent on the floor since the start of the season. Let’s hope for him that this night is a good one.
