Abbad’s 12 picks for Team France at Rio 2016

2) Boris Diaw

Diaw’s professional basketball career began with Pau-Orthez in France.  Within 2 years the Eastern-conference NBA team Atlanta Hawks became interested him and drafted him 21st overall in 2003. Nicknamed ‘3D’for his play style (Drive, Dish and Defend), Diaw turned out to be a very reliable player in the league and went onto put consistent numbers for the Hawks and later the Phoenix Suns and Charlotte Bobcats. After getting waived by the Bobcats in 2012 he signed a brief contract with the San Antonio Spurs ,the team of his national teammate and close friend Tony Parker.Impressive performances and character earned him a contract extension into the next seasons. In 2013 he was an important part of the Spurs team that lost to Miami in 2013 and then beat Miami in 2014 to become the NBA champions. Diaw started for the Spurs from Game 3 and was the Assists leader in the Finals series.

Diaw has also played a very crucial player for the French national team over the years having played a very active role in the 2 Bronze medal winning performances  in 2005, 2015, Silver medal  in 2011 and Gold in 2013. Diaw is a grinded out and intelligent player who will always do what’s best for his team whether it be crashing the boards, guarding the Bigs or dishing to score. A reliable 3 Point jump shot has made Diaw a much improved offensive weapon over the years. When the going gets tough for France at Rio 2016 you can expect Diaw to keep his cool and make intelligent playing decisions.

Points per game- 6.4, Rebounds per game – 3.1, Assists per game – 2.3

3) Nicolas Batum

Batum was predicted to be a great player from a very young age and turned out to be exactly that. Having started his Pro-balling career with Le Mans Sarthe as a teenager, Batum got drafted by the Portland Trail Blazers in 2008 where he was promoted to the starting lineup after 3 games,  which is quite an impressive feat for a 20 year old Foreign born player in the NBA! Although hit with Shoulder and Toe injuries in his career he has turned out to be one of the most productive players in the NBA first for the Trail Blazers team with whom he played for 7 years and now the Charlotte Hornets where he has teamed up with Kemba Walker and Al-Jefferson.

Batum is a 6’ 8” specialist catch and shoot forward especially from the 3 Point mark, but also has various other elements to the game like dribble penetration, cuts to the basket and off the dribble mid range jumpers. He has a very smooth shooting touch and good size and is always in constant motion which makes it difficult for opposite numbers to guard him.

Batum has won Bronze, Silver and Gold at the Euro-Basket with his national team in 2015, 2011 and 2013 respectively and also won Bronze at the 2014 Spain World Cup.  Batum will undoubtedly be the Go-To-Man along with Parker at Rio 2016 for Team France.

Points per game  – 14.9, Rebounds per game – 6.1, Assists per game – 5.8

4) Evan Fournier

Fournier was another top prospect from France who plays the Shooting guard’s spot. Having started to play professional basketball at the age of 17 for Nanterre based in France, Fournier was soon drafted to play in the NBA in 2012 by the Denver Nuggets. Fournier would come off the bench and boost the Nuggets offense, later he got traded to the Orlando Magic which is his current team.

Fournier is primarily a scoring-first guard and is an excellent shooter of the Basketball. He is also well known for his unorthodox drive to the basket but is a very witty finisher absorbing contact from big men to avoid them blocking his shot at the rim. He is also a persistent defender and constant hustle player. At just the age of 23 he has 2 Bronze medals with the French national team at the World Cup 2014 and Euro-Basket 2015. At Rio 2016 you could expect Fournier to scramble after a loose ball on the floor or turn the game around with a pass interception.

Points per game – 15.4, Assists per game – 2.7, Rebounds per game – 2.8

5) Rudy Gobert

Rudy Gobert is a star on the rise nick named the ‘Stifle Tower’. Standing at 7’1” this massive French center  started playing professional basketball in 2010 for Cholet Basket and then got drafted by the Western conference NBA team Utah Jazz in 2013 with whom he currently plays. He is known as the ‘Stifle Tower’ which is a clever reference to the iconic monument from his home country and his suffocating presence in the D, because of his record of having the largest recorded draft wingspan of 7 feet 8 ½ inches and standing reach of 9 feet 7 inches!

The 11 Rebounds per game and 3.7 Blocks per game shows what he can do to an opposing team in the paint. Everytime you’re trying to finish at the rim with Gobert around you’re risking having the ball swatted from you several seats into the crowd, not every players’ dream come true! He has also become steadily better as an offensive player over the years with reliable under the basket dunks and finger rolls, improving back to the basket game and spotting cutters.  Gobert has a Bronze at the 2014 World cup and another at the 2015 Euro-Basket. You can bet your money that this big man would be towering presence for the French who would stiffle opposing offenses.

Points per game – 9.1, Rebounds per game – 11, Blocks per game – 3.7

6) Joakim Noah

Joakim Noah is a player who missed the recently concluded Euro-Basket 2015 due to commitments with his NBA team Chicago Bulls. But Noah has certainly expressed eagerness to play for the national team at the Olympics and if he is physically fit by then he will definitely be a part of the 12 French squad that would travel to Brazil in the end of this year in my opinion.  Having moved to USA at the age of 13 Noah was given scholarship by the University of Florida and along with Al-Horford they won back to back NCAA titles. Noah was drafted by the Chicago Bulls in 2007 as the 9th overall pick and has been a stalwart for the organization since.

Noah is a hard nose, smash mouth basketball player who wouldn’t hesitate to throw an elbow at you if you’re in his space nor is he shy of trash talking opposing players out of the game. He is a solid rebounder, good under the basket and back to the basket games. Noah has one of the most awkward shooting actions in the league but is a much improved shooter now. Noah’s toughness, team first mentality and grind will come in more than handy for Team France at Rio 2016.

Points per game – 4.3, Rebounds per game – 8.8, Assists per game – 3.8

7) Kevin Seraphin

Like Gobert, Seraphin started his basketball career with Cholet basket. From a trade deal he was drafted by the Chicago Bulls but was transferred to the Washington Wizards in 2010. After 5 seasons full of ups and downs mostly off the bench, Seraphin was traded in 2015 to the New York Knicks. Although his career started with more promise as a tough Power-Forward injuries and lack of playing time has made his NBA career not so glamorous as many would have liked it to be. But Seraphin is young and has no shortage of talent so I would definitely give the 26 year old the nod for the French squad to Rio.

In the offensive end Seraphin’s favourite shot is the hook shot in the paint; he has good back to the basket post-up game and also reliable shooting. He sets good screens and spots cutters well. Defensively Seraphin is very physical and would stand his ground against any big. At Rio 2016 France would be hoping that he could bring his A game in the post.

Points per game – 3.9, Rebounds per game – 2.6, Assists per game – 1

8) Mickael Pietrus

Mickael started his Pro-Basketball career with Pau-Orthez and was then drafted by the Golden State Warriors in 2003. Since then he has played for the Orlando Magic, Phoenix Suns, Boston Celtics and Toronto Raptors. He currently plays for SLUC Nancy Basket in Europe.

Back in his prime Pietrus was a very Athletic shooting guard and also a very reliable jump shooter.  Despite being a guard he will always hover around the paint hungry for a rebound as depicted by his Rebound stat line and was also an exceptionally good cutter.

I’ll be including the 35 year old veteran Pietrus in the French team not only because of his experience of playing in the NBA and in Europe but also because of the toughness he will bring to the national team along with players like Joakim Noah. Pietrus is a hustle player.

Points per game – 6.6,  Rebounds per game – 8.3, Assists per game – 1.8

9) Ian Mahinmi

Mahinmi was signed by STB Le Havre to play for them at just the age of 17 impressed by his exceptional performance at the 2004 U-18 European championships. He later went onto play for the French club Pau-Orthez before being drafted 28th overall by the San Antonio Spurs in 2007. He has also played for Dallas Mavericks and currently plays for the Indiana Pacers and played a crucial in the Pacers push in the Eastern conference playoffs although they fell to the Toronto Raptors in what was a closely fought series.

Mahimi is great at pick and rolls, cutting to the rim and slamming on Alley-oops and is a solid rebounder and shot blocker.  At Rio 2016 Mahinmi will definitely provide the Off-bench Big Man presence for Team France.

Points per game – 9.3, Rebounds per game – 7.1, Assists per game – 1.5

10) Joffrey Lauvergne

Lauvergne is a young but talented prospect for the French national basketball team going forward. He has played for a Elan Chalon, Valencia, Partizan, Khimki in Europe in the past and currently plays for the Denver Nuggets. Lauvergne is the type of player who will make the best out of every opportunity presented to him as he is currently proving with his tenure with the Nuggets since 2015 and will definitely play his heart out for Team France at Rio 2016.

Points per game – 7.9, Rebounds per game – 4.9, Assists per game – 0.9

11) Leo Westermann

Westermann is a above averaged sized Point guard playing for Barcelona in the Spanish league and also the Euro-League. He started his career with ASVEL and then moved to Partisan before settling with his current Spanish based club with whom he is in his 3rd season.

Westermann is a very smooth flowing player who is exceptional at spotting an open man even when he is in motion. He is a pass-first guard but also knows when to make baskets on his own. A very good shooter on and off the ball and is also a harassing off the ball defender. He will definitely fill in Parker’s big shoes when the veteran goes out of the game for breathers at Rio 2016.

Points per game – 10.1, Assists per game – 4.3, Rebounds per game – 2.8

12) Nando De Colo

De Colo is a lethal offensive player who can play both at the Point guard or Shooting guard spot. Having started his career with Cholet Basket he went onto play Valencia and then the San Antonio Spurs in the NBA between 2012 and 2014. Then played for Austin Toros after which he had a very brief stint with the Toronto Raptors before he was signed by the Russian club CSKA Moscow where he is a star caliber player now.

He is a live wire both on the offensive and defensive ends of the floor and can contribute to the team in many ways including shooting the 3 Ball, controlling the set offense as a Ball handler and also mark and lock down an opposing team’s offensive player. De Colo has won Bronze at the 2015 Euro-Basket, Silver in 2011 and Gold in 2013 also at Euro-Baskets for Team France in the past. De Colo is in his prime now and is doing great things for CSKA Moscow at the Euro-League and nothing less will be expected from him when he tours Rio 2016 with Team France.

Points per game – 19.4, Rebounds per game – 3.6, Assists per game – 5, Steals per game – 1.1