By Nick Moyle, Staff writer | San Antonio Express-News (SAEN), 2024-07-23 16:28:50
由生成式人工智能翻译，译文内容可能不准确或不完整，以原文为准。
2022 年 11 月 14 日，在法国西南部波城举行的 2023 年国际篮联篮球世界杯欧洲区预选赛法国队对阵波斯尼亚和黑塞哥维那队的比赛前，法国队教练樊尚·科莱 (Vincent Collet) 与维克多·文班亚马 (Victor Wembanyama) 交谈。这位 NBA 年度最佳新秀和年度最佳防守球员的亚军将成为巴黎奥运会的焦点人物之一。
二十年前，马刺传奇人物马努·吉诺比利 (Manu Ginobili) 推动了阿根廷队在夏季奥运会上演了一场震惊世界的比赛，击败了美国队，为阿根廷赢得了历史上首枚奥运会篮球金牌。再过几天，当 2024 年巴黎奥运会开幕时，维克多·文班亚马 (Victor Wembanyama) 将试图追随吉诺比利的脚步。
7 月 27 日，法国队将在皮埃尔·莫鲁瓦体育场迎战巴西队，文班亚马将在 B 组的比赛中迎来自己的奥运首秀。如果法国队在循环赛预赛中排名前两位，或者在排名第三的小组中排名前两位，他们将晋级四分之一决赛。
“自从我第一次在电视上看到奥运会以来，我就一直在为之做准备，”文班亚马最近告诉美联社。“这一直是一个梦想，然后随着我们长大，它变成了一个目标。这绝对是体育运动中独一无二的东西。我认为这是世界上最重要的体育赛事。”
以下简要介绍了文班亚马和法国国家队在巴黎的前程。
7 月 27 日：法国 vs 巴西
法国队将作为夺冠热门迎来奥运首战。
巴西队拥有一些前 NBA 球员，包括 2014 年的首轮秀布鲁诺·卡波克洛 (Bruno Caboclo)、前公牛队中锋克里斯蒂亚诺·费利西奥 (Cristiano Felício) 和征战了八个赛季的后卫劳尔·内托 (Raul Neto)。这支球队在本月早些时候举行的拉脱维亚奥运会资格赛中表现出色，足以赢得冠军，但法国队拥有文班亚马、四届年度最佳防守球员鲁迪·戈贝尔 (Rudy Gobert)、尼古拉斯·巴图姆 (Nicolas Batum) 和比拉尔·库利巴利 (Bilal Coulibaly) 等才华横溢、身高臂长的 NBA 职业球员。法国队还可以依靠南多·德科洛 (Nando de Colo) 和埃文·富尼耶 (Evan Fournier) 经验丰富后卫的出色发挥。
7 月 30 日：法国 vs 日本
面对目前在国际篮联世界排名中位列第 26 位的日本队，文班亚马的球队将再次成为两位数的夺冠热门。
日本队将 heavily 依赖洛杉矶湖人队前锋八村塁 (Rui Hachimura) 和前华盛顿奇才队前锋渡边雄太 (Yuta Watanabe)。八村塁上赛季场均得到 13.6 分、4.3 个篮板和 1.4 个三分球（三分命中率为 42.4%）。除了这两名球员之外，日本队缺乏与法国队的众多球星和头脑冷静的角色球员抗衡所需的阵容深度和身高。
8 月 2 日：法国 vs 德国
目前在国际篮联排名中位列第 3 的德国队将是法国队争夺 B 组第一过程中遇到的最强劲对手。
德国队在赢得 2023 年菲律宾世界杯的征途中淘汰了美国队，并在周一的最后一场奥运会前热身赛中险些再次爆冷击败美国队，最终以 88-92 惜败。瓦格纳兄弟——弗朗茨 (Franz) 和莫里茨 (Moritz)——上赛季为奥兰多魔术队效力期间，场均合计得到 30.6 分、9.6 个篮板、4.9 次助攻、1.8 个三分球和 1.6 次抢断。德国队还拥有一条由征战 NBA 多年的后卫丹尼斯·施罗德 (Dennis Schroder) 和神射手、奥运会老将安德烈亚斯·奥布斯特 (Andreas Obst) 领衔的强悍后场。
无论哪支球队赢得这场比赛，几乎都能锁定小组第一。
8 月 6 日：四分之一决赛（待定）
如果法国队晋级淘汰赛阶段，将有多场潜在的重量级对决等待着他们。
美国队、西班牙队、加拿大队、塞尔维亚队和澳大利亚队——国际篮联世界排名前五的球队中的四支——预计都将从小组赛阶段突围。来自同一小组的球队不会在四分之一决赛中相遇，因此法国队和德国队的潜在复赛要到半决赛才会上演。
四支球队将从四分之一决赛中晋级，参加 8 月 8 日的半决赛。金牌争夺战和铜牌争夺战将于 8 月 10 日举行。
2023 年 6 月 24 日，马刺队的维克多·文班亚马，状元秀，在新闻发布会前向球迷致意。
如果法国队从小组赛中突围，维克多·文班亚马和法国队将在四分之一决赛中面临一些强劲对手的挑战。
2024 年 6 月 27 日，效力于 NBA 圣安东尼奥马刺队的法国篮球运动员维克多·文班亚马抵达位于巴黎郊外万塞纳的法国国家体育与体育学院，参加媒体日活动。
2024 年 5 月 11 日，圣安东尼奥马刺队的维克多·文班亚马在圣安东尼奥举行的 NBA 篮球新闻发布会上，在收到他的 2023-24 赛季 NBA 年度最佳新秀奖杯后发表讲话。
点击查看原文：A look at French star Victor Wembanyama's path to the Olympic podium
A look at French star Victor Wembanyama’s path to the Olympic podium
French coach Vincent Collet speaks to Victor Wembanyama before the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023 European Qualifiers match between France and Bosnia Herzegovina in Pau, southwestern France, Monday, Nov. 14, 2022. The NBA rookie of the year and runner-up for defensive player of the year will be one of the faces of the Paris Games.
Two decades ago, Spurs legend Manu Ginobili propelled Argentina to a world-shaking upset of the United States en route to the country’s first Summer Olympics basketball gold medal. In just a few days, Victor Wembanyama will try to tread the same path as Ginobili when the 2024 Paris Games begin.
Wembanyama will make his Olympic debut on July 27 when France faces Brazil in a Group B matchup at Pierre Mauroy Stadium. If Les Bleus finish the round-robin preliminaries in the top two or rank among the top two third-place group finishers, they’ll advance to the quarterfinals.
“I have been preparing for them since the first time I saw the Olympics on TV,” Wembanyama recently told the Associated Press. “It was always a dream and then as we grew up it became a goal. It’s definitely something that’s really unique in sport. I think it’s the most important sporting event in the world.”
Here’s a quick look at what lies ahead for Wembanyama and the French national team in Paris.
July 27: France vs. Brazil
France enters its Olympic opener as a heavy favorite.
Brazil boasts a few former NBA players, including 2014 first-round pick Bruno Caboclo, former Bulls center Cristiano Felício and eight-year veteran guard Raul Neto. This roster was good enough to win an Olympic Qualifying tournament in Latvia earlier this month, but France is teeming with talented, towering and long-armed NBA pros like Wembanyama, four-time Defensive Player of the Year Rudy Gobert, Nicolas Batum and Bilal Coulibaly. France can also count on experienced guard play from Nando de Colo and Evan Fournier.
July 30: France vs. Japan
Wembanyama’s outfit will again be a double-digit favorite against Japan, which is currently No. 26 in FIBA’s World Basketball Rankings.
Japan will lean heavily on Los Angeles Lakers forward Rui Hachimura, who averaged 13.6 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.4 3-pointers (on 42.4% shooting) last season, and former Washington Wizards forward Yuta Watanabe. Beyond those two, Japan lacks the depth and size needed to compete with France’s array of stars and heady role players.
Aug. 2: France vs. Germany
Currently No. 3 in FIBA’s rankings, Germany will provide the stiffest test as France looks to win Group B.
Germany eliminated the United States on its way to winning to 2023 World Cup in the Philippines and nearly upset Team USA again on Monday, falling 92-88 in a final pre-Olympics exhibition. The Wagner brothers — Franz and Moritz — combined to average 30.6 points, 9.6 rebounds, 4.9 assists, 1.8 3-pointers and 1.6 steals per game for the Orlando Magic last season. Germany also has a fierce backcourt led by longtime NBA guard Dennis Schroder and sharpshooting Olympic veteran Andreas Obst.
Whoever wins this game will almost certainly finish atop the group.
Aug. 6: Quarterfinals (TBD)
A number of potential heavyweight matchups await France if it advances to the knockout stage.
The United States, Spain, Canada, Serbia and Australia — four of the top five in FIBA’s world rankings — are all expected to advance beyond the group phase. Teams from the same group cannot be drawn against each other in the quarterfinals, so a potential France-Germany rematch could not happen until the semifinals.
Four teams will advance from the quarterfinals to the Aug. 8 semifinals. The gold-medal game and third-place game are scheduled for Aug. 10.
The Spurs’ Victor Wembanyama, the No. 1 draft pick, greets fans before a June 24, 2023 press conference.
Victor Wembanyama and France will have some stiff competition waiting for them in the quarterfinals if they advance out of group play.
France’s basketball player Victor Wembanyama, who plays for the NBA San Antonio Spurs, arrives for media day at the French National Institute of Sport and Physical Education, in Vincennes, outside Paris, Thursday, June 27, 2024.
San Antonio Spurs’ Victor Wembanyama speaks after receiving his 2023-24 NBA Rookie of the Year trophy during an NBA basketball news conference, Saturday, May 11, 2024, in San Antonio.
By Nick Moyle, Staff writer, via San Antonio Express-News