Knicks Forward One Player to Watch at EuroBasket

New York Knicks forward Guerschon Yabusele is captaining the French men's national team for the Eurobasket tournament, which is set to take place over the next several weeks.

As the silver medalists in the 2024 Paris Olympics, Yabusele and the Frenchmen are eager to return to the top of the global basketball world. Yabusele is viewed as one of the best players in the tournament, where he will represent the Knicks for the first time.

“Those are some of the best players in the world," Yabusele said via EuroHoops.

"That’s why I think this is going to be one of the biggest competitions. It’s going to be tough, and in terms of basketball, one of the purest. They’re huge for their teams — not just scoring, but passing, playmaking. We’ll try to keep them low in scoring and assists. But at the end of the day, every team is dangerous. We just have to focus on ourselves, play our game, and whatever happens, happens.”

Philadelphia 76ers forward Guerschon Yabusele reacts to his three pointer against the Washington Wizards. | Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

Yabusele is expected to take on a bigger role for France during the tournament since neither Rudy Gobert of the Minnesota Timberwolves nor Victor Wembanyama of the San Antonio Spurs are on the roster.

Other NBA players on the team include last year's No. 1 overall pick Zaccharie Risacher, No. 2 overall pick Alex Sarr and Bilal Coulibaly, the No. 7 overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft. Former NBA players Elie Okobo, Timothe Luwawu-Cabbarot, Theo Maledon and Jaylen Hoard are also on the roster.

Yabusele has led France to a perfect 5-0 mark in the games leading up to the tournament, which is a positive sign for what's to come. However, they will have to defeat some NBA giants on their road to victory in the tournament.

In Group D action, France will play Luka Doncic's Slovenian national team. Other major players competing in the tournament are Nikola Jokic (Serbia), Giannis Antetokounmpo (Greece) and Lauri Markkanen (Finland). Players on the rise like Alperen Sengun (Turkey) and Franz Wagner (Germany) should be challenges throughout the tournament.

Yabusele and France will compete in their first game on Aug. 28 against Belgium.

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