Paris, France — Even though Canada and Germany had a better team than France, Victor Wembanyama and Co. managed to get past the blockages and advance to finals where they will play for gold against the United States. Thursday got France a 73-69 win over Germany, but their path to reaching the semi-finals was marked by bold strategic approaches and standout performances.

Despite the setbacks, France managed to defeat Canada 82-73, taking full advantage of a charged atmosphere at Bercy Arena. 

France head coach Vincent Collet made significant adjustments to the starting lineup, benching Rudy Gobert and Evan Fournier in favor of Isaia Cordinier and Guerschon Yabusele. Collet also decided on a one-on-one defensive approach against Canada’s star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. Nicolas Batum took on the defensive assignment instead of blitzing often to put the defense out of rotation. This strategy paid off early, as Cordinier scored 10 points in the first quarter, helping France to a double-digit lead and limiting Canada to 15 points in 15 minutes.

France’s lead grew to 19 points early in the second half, but Canada, coached by Jordi Fernandez, refused to back down. Gilgeous-Alexander found his rhythm in the third quarter, dominating the rebounds and, along with RJ Barrett, trimming the gap to 65-60 with four minutes to play. The turning point came when Evan Fournier scored seven quick points, and Victor Wembanyama made a crucial block on Dillon Brooks. Fournier hit a three-pointer from half-court as the shot clock expired, pushing the lead to 76-66. The crowd’s reaction was deafening as France secured their victory.

Isaia Cordinier had a heroic performance, scoring 20 points and providing a significant boost on both ends of the floor. “It’s an immense satisfaction,” Cordinier told reporters after the game. “We worked during three days. We approached this game the right way and that gave us a lot of energy. Vincent (Collet) gave us a great motivational speech before the game and that’s what we needed to hear.”

Mathias Lessort, who came off the bench to score 13 points, highlighted the team’s collective effort. “We knew everybody had to step up, all 12 of us. We knew what kind of team Canada was. They’ve been amazing the whole tournament, and it was on us to be ourselves, to step up, all together, and that’s what we did, the best way possible.”

Canada’s run is over despite facing fair expectations of winning a medal for the first time since winning silver in 1936. Now, the program must go back to the drawing board and strategize on how to make the most of having NBA MVP candidate and All-NBA First-Team guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander going into the future, with no shortage of intriguing Canadian talent to try to recruit to compete leading into the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles. 

Strategic sacrifices

France’s head coach, Vincent Collet, made significant strategic adjustments to outmaneuver Canada. In a bold move, he benched Rudy Gobert, opting instead for Isaia Cordinier and Guerschon Yabusele in the starting lineup.

Gobert had a serious finger injury in the days leading into this game. Fournier praised his teammate for still playing even though he logged just four minutes, saying, “First of all, Rudy was not even supposed to play. He got a little surgery last night on his finger. Just the fact that he was available to play shows how much this means to him.”

The coach later also clarified that Gobert did not undergo surgery but revealed it was unknown if he could play until the morning of the game. “My idea was to protect him if I could do it. I wanted to leave him on the bench. As it was working well with the other big men, I preferred to keep him on the bench.” Going forward, Collet envisions Gobert will be ready, diminishing any concerns. “He will be ready for the next game.”

And the measures did not just stop at Gobert. Collet even benched Evan Fournier. But all went in vain as he took over when it really mattered to the team. Scoring 12 points in the last 3 and a half minutes, Fournier threw a 40-footer shot, clinching a thrilling win for France.

Collet also deployed a one-on-one defensive approach against Canada’s star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, with Nicolas Batum taking the assignment. This strategy effectively limited Canada to just 15 points in the first 15 minutes, allowing France to establish a strong lead. Collet’s decision to use a smaller, faster lineup paid dividends as France’s lead ballooned to 19 points early in the second half.

Canada’s heartbreak, and the future ahead

For Canada, the loss marks the end of a promising Olympic run. Despite the disappointment, HC Jordi Fernandez remains optimistic about the future, emphasizing the lessons learned from this experience.

“I think if you remember this feeling – it’s not a good feeling – and you come back to the Olympics, and you remember this feeling, that’s how you break through. Teams that I’ve been a part of, that have won, that had a lot of success, there’s always some disappointment at some point. And you don’t know how much you can do until you go through tough times. We cannot forget these tough times. That’s how we move on.” 

As for Gilgeous-Alexander, this loss will offer Team Canada some valuable lessons. “Obviously, it’s the best basketball players in the world. So it’s a very hard tournament, if not the hardest.”

Canada will now focus on building a stronger team for future competitions, with an eye on the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles.

Team Efforts Propel France to Finals

As for France, the journey continues to battle it out for the Gold medal against the United States, who are fresh off a thunderous win against Serbia. France winning their first gold medal in men’s basketball on home soil will be a glorifying moment. They just need to focus their attention on their strategic flexibility, as demonstrated in their victory over Canada and Germany. After a matchup against Canada, Wembanayam expressed his confidence in his team’s dedication to their goal.

“The game plan was definitely to involve the whole team,” Wemby explained. “I think we had close to 20 assists. So that’s good. And on my side, [the goal] was to not force things and take the shots that were open and given to me.” And he does understand how much the team needs him to step up. “I think if I made my shots, we would have won the game earlier. I’m glad we got the win, and it just shows that we can be much better.”

And this actually showed in his last match against Germany, when he put out his blood and sweat to win it. “In our national anthem, we talk about blood, too. We are willing to leave the blood on the court. It’s not a big deal. If it allows us to win gold, I’m in.”

All Wemby is looking forward to is making history, to relish for years to come. “This is why I’ve been trying to keep some of that emotion inside. It was a special moment with the fans. They made it hard not to cry.”