It’s been a few days since the Blues had to lose in the EuroBasket final, against a team from Spain simply above the lot. If Vincent Collet needs a little time to analyze this result and try to rectify the situation in the future, an Internet user thinks he knows why this EDF has struggled so much in this competition, and this is partly explained by the absences.
This result may be a thing of the past, but it is nonetheless painful. The Blues are still bitter after the defeat against Spain in this EuroBasket, even if the teammates of Willy Hernangomez, named MVP of the tournament, were much better. A collective game, oiled, which proved that it was not necessarily necessary to have a big name in its workforce to win, but rather to have a well-built roster. Vincent Collet did what he could by composing a list of 12 names, however, it was impossible to fill in certain absences.
The first that comes to mind is obviously that of the captain, in the person of Nicolas Batum. At “rest” if one can say, Batman said no to the France team for this competition, and needless to say that his absence weighed in the balance. His leadership, his ability to punish at three points, not to mention his defense, let’s just say the outcome of the tournament could have been different with his presence.
The two absences that penalized the Blues at EuroBasket
Batum is not the only name missing for Vincent Collet’s men, since the talent of Nando de Colo would not have been refused. The leader had warned everyone months ago, just to breathe before the World Cup next year and the Olympic Games in 2024. The fact is that here again, his creativity at the lead would have made it possible to bring more solutions for the staff of the France team. A user confirms this thought, he who returned to the defeat of the Blues and the possible arrivals of Joel Embiid, as well as Victor Wembanyama.
21/ …is the ultimate glue guy. Their returns will arguably be more impactful than the shiny addition of Joel Embiid and Victor Wembanyama (who I don’t anticipate to be more than the 11th man in Paris 2024). The problem for France is that their most important playmakers…
— Max Jacoby (@MaxJacoby) September 20, 2022
This summer, France lacked cruelly important players with Nicolas Batum and Nando de Colo, which made it possible to highlight their lack of creation. De Colo is a second creator alongside Heurtel and Batum is the ultimate player ready to follow you everywhere. Their return will I think be more impactful than the brilliant additions of Joel Embiid and Victor Wembanyama (who will not be more than an 11th player for Paris in 2024).
We obviously cannot rewrite history, but there is no doubt that the presence of Batum and De Colo could have changed a lot of things, simply in the content of the matches. The other worry to have though? The youth. As pointed out by Max Jacoby, Nando is 35, while Nico and Heurtel are both 33 already. With the full seasons and the two international competitions to come, we will have to keep up the pace.
The defeat against this Spain in EuroBasket remains difficult to digest, even if it is difficult to say that it is not deserved. Fortunately, there is room for improvement for our Blues with the return of the absentees and the arrival of two monsters, Embiid and Wembanyama. If it works, this roster could do some serious damage.
