Victor Wembanyama confirms commitment to play for France in 2024 Olympics
While there wasn’t resounding doubt, you won’t have to worry about Victor Wembanyama‘s commitment to play for France, his home country, in the Paris 2024 Summer Olympics.
Wembanyama confirmed he plans to suit up for France, aiming for Gold after an incredibly disappointing 2023 FIBA World Cup, which he did not participate in.
“Succeeding in the Olympics would be a great story,” he said in a recent press conference, according to Eurohoops.net. “And there will be no goal other than gold. I will of course be present at the Olympics.”
France, viewed as a favorite to win the tournament plus as a legitimate candidate to knock off Team USA, finished 18th out of 32 countries; it failed to make it out of the group stage with losses to Latvia and eventual bronze medalist Canada.
“I watched the World Cup and the result was very disappointing,” he said. “However, I am not worried. I have no other criticism to make, I was not in the team and it is in the hands of top-level players. I feel that this does not alter the opportunity to do something big in Paris next year.”
The 19-year-old was selected No. 1 overall by the San Antonio Spurs in June. He explained that the summer chaos was the biggest reason why he did not partake in this most recent World Cup, which featured Nic Batum, Rudy Gobert, Evan Fournier and French phenomenon Nando De Colo.
“It was the first time in my life that I felt tired in my head because of all the events that happened one after the other,” he said. “Nothing negative. But the vacation, after the Summer League, was a necessity to continue calmly on a mental level. I took the time to isolate myself.
“This is the first time I have appeared in the media in three months. It did me good.”
The 2024 Paris Olympics will mark Wembanyama’s first-ever Olympics. He most recently participated in the 2021 U-19 World Cup in Latvia, where France earned silver after a crushing 83-81 loss to the USA, which featured Chet Holmgren, Jaden Ivey, Kenneth Lofton Jr. and Kennedy Chandler, among others.
He averaged 14.0 points, 7.4 rebounds and an astounding 5.7 blocks in 22.5 minutes per game across seven contests that tournament. He shot 45.8 percent from the floor and 78.3 percent from the free-throw line, despite connecting on just four of his 22 3-point attempts.
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