France Has Become an NBA Powerhouse
Before the Pacers and Spurs tip off in Paris, here's how French players have become such an important part of the NBA's landscape — and an even bigger part of its future.
I'm not sure how much Paris, France and San Antonio, Texas have in common, but I know at least one thing they share; an admiration for Victor Wembanyama. The Spurs megastar has improbably lived up to the impossible expectations set out for him since he entered the league last year as the most hyped prospect in two decades, and Spurs fans have quickly latched onto the idea of many, many years of Wemby. Now, he returns home as his San Antonio Spurs set to clash with the Indiana Pacers in this year's NBA Paris Games.
For folks in San Antonio, the 7-foot-4 "Alien" is the continuation of a line of Hall-of-Fame big men in San Antonio, which started in 1989 with David Robinson, who then passed the baton to Tim Duncan.
For those in Paris, he is the latest — and perhaps best ever — success story of a player from their home country to crack the NBA. The path from Europe's fifth-most populous country to professional ball stateside isn't a new or rare one; in 2023, Tony Parker became the first French player inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame. His countryman, Boris Diaw, was a huge part of the 2014 Spurs title run alongside Parker. Rudy Gobert, from Saint-Quentin, has won four Defensive Player of the Year awards in the NBA. Nicolas Batum has carved out well over a decade-long career and plenty of other guys have logged productive NBA tenures after growing up in France.
But the league has never experienced as massive an influx of French talent as it has over the past few years. Wembanyama leads the charge — and might well be the NBA's preeminent star within five years — though he's not the only young Frenchman with real star potential.
Seven French players have been drafted in the first round over the past three years; just one year after Wemby was the consensus top pick, fellow French prospects Zaccharie Risacher and Alex Sarr went No. 1 and No. 2 overall in 2024. Bilal Coulibaly, Tidjane Salaun and Pacome Dadiet also went in the first round last year, Ousmane Dieng was picked No. 11 in 2022, and even Wemby's teammate in France, Bilal Coulibaly, was a lottery pick in 2023.
Add second-round picks Rayan Rupert, Moussa Diabate and Sidy Cissoko in the past two years, and the list of French talent in the NBA is at an all-time high.
Has anything changed in France to fuel this run on French players? Quantity, for one; according to an Associated Press story from last year, "There are about 750,000 people registered with basketball clubs in France — nearly 70,000 more than two years ago and an increase of 170,000 since 2014."
Another big reason for the "French Revolution" within the NBA might have more to do with what NBA front offices value these days; lengthy, athletic players who can handle the ball and potentially make shots consistently. Notice a pattern in all the players listed above?
"That’s what separates us from our European rivals and connects us to the style played in America. We know how to develop them into tall and versatile players that the NBA craves," said Frédéric Fauthoux to the Associated Press. Fauthoux is the head coach of JL Bourg, the team that 2024 No. 1 pick Zaccharie Risacher played for in France in 2023-24.
He's got a point. Plus, so many French basketball prospects have already played against professionals by the time they enter the NBA Draft. That experience is hard to quantify; at the very least, it forces the players to develop their skills more, relying less on physical gifts than they'd be able to in the US. That doesn’t always mean these guys are polished and ready to go when they make it to the NBA — they’re often still 18 or 19 year old kids, after all — but competing against grown men as a teenager forces a player to adapt, something that will also be necessary during an NBA career.
Teeming With Potential
None of the players drafted in the past two drafts will be as good as Victor Wembanyama, because... no one will be as good as Victor Wembanyama. But the talent coming into the NBA from France is still unrivaled by any other country right now.
Alex Sarr and Bilal Coulibaly are likey the two players on the Washington Wizards that fans can confidently say will be part of the team's future plans. Sarr has all the tools to become a two-way force in the NBA, and All-Defense teams likely litter his future. Coulibaly is the prototype of the smooth, defensively sound wing with good vision and shooting upside that JL Bourg described. Zaccharie Risacher is extremely raw — but has already posted great games for a playoff-hopeful team in Atlanta.
French players aren't new to the NBA; but this rush of talent coming from Paris and beyond highlights just how important France is going to be for the future of NBA basketball. Wemby may be one of one, but fellow Frenchman are coming to the NBA bunches — and it won't stop anytime soon.
Nolan Traoré and Noah Penda are the newest French phenoms who highlight the 2025 Draft — both will likely be selected in the first round come June.
NOTE: This story was originally published at my other home, FanSided! There is a longer version RIGHT HERE if you’re interested. If you’re not… just say that you hate me.
ARTICLE PICTURE FROM SPORTS BUSINESS JOURNAL.