Wembanyama beats Jokic: “There’s always something to learn from him”
Wembanyama and Jokic were the stars of France-Serbia, decided 91-90 by Hoard in the final seconds. The Frenchman reflects on his duel with the three-time NBA MVP
The matchup between France and Serbia produced a photo-finish ending, with the French side winning 91-90 thanks to a buzzer-beating basket by Jaylen Hoard with just 4.7 seconds remaining.
The dramatic finish came after a remarkable turnaround: the Bleus, who held a 19-point lead at halftime (54-35), gradually watched Serbia fight its way back behind another dominant performance from Nikola Jokic, who finished with 34 points, 13 rebounds and 5 assists.
Making his first appearance as captain of the national team, Victor Wembanyama answered with 18 points, 5 rebounds and 2 blocks, both of them coming against the Nuggets center. After the game, however, he preferred to highlight the team’s maturity:
Before the game, I told the guys that we couldn’t underestimate the challenge, even though it was a friendly. We have to learn how to win. It’s a new team, and today we realized that we have a weakness when we’re up by 20 points. But we also saw that we know how to respond when our opponents come back. We have to take every possible lesson from each game
Victor Wembanyama
The duel with Jokic: “There’s always something to learn from him”
Despite Jokic repeatedly anointing him as a potential greatest player of all time, the San Antonio Spurs star maintains an attitude of constant learning whenever he faces the three-time NBA MVP:
Of course you always learn when you play against Jokic. In every matchup on the court, you can pick up details, reads and smarter plays
Victor Wembanyama
With the FIBA World Cup qualifying rounds approaching, France can enjoy its new leader (who feels the weight of representing the team) as it looks to strengthen the chemistry of a group that at the 2024 Paris Olympics was stopped only by the brilliance of Steph Curry.