Levallois sits far from any immediate NBA Europe ambitions as head coach Sacha Giffa insists his newly promoted squad focuses strictly on avoiding an immediate drop back to Nationale 1 in the ÉLITE 2 championship.
The Trap Facing Recent ÉLITE 2 Promoted Sides
Recent history in France’s second tier offers a blunt warning for clubs stepping up from NM1. Quimper and Challans suffered direct relegation after finishing 19th and 20th respectively during the 2025-26 campaign. Chartres finished as the league’s bottom side the year prior, while Hyères-Toulon escaped the drop by a single victory. Only Caen managed a relatively calm transition with a 14th-place finish.
“We saw that those who went up last year returned directly to Nationale 1,” Giffa said. “We must learn from the fact that previous promoted teams only made a round trip. That is all we do not want.”
Those struggles stand in sharp contrast to the high-profile narrative surrounding the Parisian club. Backed by American investors EuroStep Ventures—who harbor open ambitions of reaching an eventual NBA Europe tier alongside star investor Ja Morant—the Metropolitans carry expectations that extend well beyond standard second-division survival.
Budget Ratios Build the League’s Largest Roster
Despite grand ownership ambitions, Levallois operates with the 17th-largest budget in the division. However, the club channels financial resources heavily into its sporting operations. With 36 percent of its total budget allocated to the payroll—good for 11th in ÉLITE 2—the club holds the second-highest wage ratio relative to its overall budget in the league.
That spending model funded a 13-player professional roster anchored by veteran forward Giovan Oniangue. A strong start yielded three wins from the opening four matches, but Giffa rejected any notion of early comfort.
“The standings mean nothing for now,” Giffa said. “We must not forget that we are promoted. I tried to keep the same players who made me win in NM1, but the goal is simply to stay in ÉLITE 2. We do not want to burn steps, we only think about survival.”
A Defensively Porous Reality Check at Aix-Maurienne
A harsh reminder of the division’s standards arrived on Tuesday, October 20, 2026, at Salle Marlioz. Levallois delivered a poor defensive performance in an 85–78 defeat against Aix-Maurienne, trailing by 20 points at the 35-minute mark before a late push narrowed the final margin.
-devrait-etre-present-pour-le-match-contre-aix-maurienne-vendredi-3-mai-photo-archives-maxime-jegat-1562290476.jpg "Levallois Warns Against Overconfidence After Aix-Maurienne Defeat")
Aix-Maurienne capitalized on 47.6 percent shooting from the field and collected 44 rebounds—including 18 on the offensive glass—while holding Levallois to 38.1 percent shooting and 29 total rebounds.
“It is learning,” Giffa said after the final buzzer. “I told my guys that we started at a bad rhythm. We cannot play only in attack; that is how we lose matches.”
Guard Maxence Dadiet echoed his coach’s assessment regarding the squad’s competitive edge on the road.
“We must play like promoted teams, we must play with grit,” Dadiet said. “If we continue to show up away from home with so little intensity, we will lose like anyone else. We must not overconfidence ourselves by taking ÉLITE 2 for granted.”
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