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Victor Wembanyama led the way as France began the Second Round of the 2027 FIBA World Cup European Qualifiers with a commanding 92-67 win over Slovenia in Paris. The 22-year-old center finished with 22 points, nine rebounds and one block in only 21 minutes on the court. He shot 6-of-10 from the field, made all five of his two-point attempts and went 9-of-10 from the free-throw line.
Despite returning to a team that has changed since Paris 2024, Wembanyama has found the reintegration process straightforward. “It wasn’t difficult at all,” he said. “In a way, we are almost all new, and Freddy is relatively new as well. Evan has just returned, too. When you look at the group, I have played with or against almost everyone, apart from maybe one or two players.” The road to the World Cup in Qatar intensifies with two preparation exhibitions against Nikola Jokic and a formidable Serbian squad, first in Belgrade and then back in Orleans.
Rudy Gobert: Solid week. Jon Krawczynski: Incredible video from the week in Paris. Rudy Gobert, from what I’m told, covered the whole team’s expenses in Paris, lined up workouts and team building activities and made sure the trip was a resounding success. Quite a gesture from the vet.
Those departures leave a big hole in the leadership category. Anthony Edwards has gotten increasingly more vocal over the years and is stepping it up even more this summer. He has been spending time at the team’s practice facility in Minnesota and taking extra care to make sure LaMelo Ball feels welcome in his new home. And it was Edwards and Ball, according to team sources who spoke to The Athletic on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly on team discussions, who offered to foot the bill for the entire team to fly to Paris for the workouts. “He’s extremely excited about the (Ball) deal,” Chris Finch told The Athletic at summer league in July. “Now, it’s up to him to take the next step in leadership. His voice has grown intelligently and appropriately over the last few seasons. And now, it’s got to be the combination of the voice plus the everyday presence.”
Victor Wembanyama will bring several San Antonio Spurs teammates and coaches together in France ahead of the 2026-27 NBA season Spurs CEO R.C. Buford revealed that a group of around eight to ten people will travel to Paris next week to spend time and work with the French star before training camp. “Our coaches and players are going to be here together next week, doing some work in Paris,” Buford said during an appearance on TrashTalk. “They’re coming over to see Victor, about eight or ten of them.”
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Victor Wembanyama is preparing to bring several San Antonio Spurs teammates together in France ahead of the 2026-27 NBA season. Spurs CEO R.C. Buford revealed that a group of players and coaches will travel to Paris to spend time and work with Wembanyama before training camp. "Our coaches, our players are going to be here together next week doing some work… in Paris," Buford said during an appearance on TrashTalk. "They're coming over to see Victor, about 8 or 10."
The Spurs will return to Europe next January, with two regular season games relocated to Paris on the 14th, and then to Manchester, England, on the 17th, against the New Orleans Pelicans. Was this a request from you, or a decision made by the NBA? RC Buford: We are an international program and have always been committed to growing and getting closer to our fans around the world. Playing in Paris again obviously means something to Victor, but we didn't request it. I think the League recognized the impact he had when he played in Paris during the 2024 Olympics and then at the Paris Games in January 2025. The French market is different from the US market, but we have been incredibly well served so far, both by our fans and our commercial partners. And we'll be back in Paris at the end of the month to meet people there and inaugurate a new basketball court
For those first dozen teams, the group is speaking with bidders in Athens, Greece; Barcelona, Spain; Berlin; Istanbul; London; Lyon, France; Madrid, Spain; Manchester, England; Milan; Munich; Paris; and Rome. “We’re extremely encouraged by the final bids we received for permanent franchises,” Mark Tatum, NBA deputy commissioner, said in a statement. “This will be the biggest influx of capital European basketball has ever seen, and we have clear front-runners in each of our 12 target cities, including many existing basketball and football clubs. We will now work with the NBA and FIBA Boards to finalize the long-form agreements.”
The permanent franchise sales will produce billions in capital, with some bids involving London and Paris already topping $1 billion, sources said. While the NBA hasn’t finalized exactly how that money will be divvied up, the majority of it will be used to fund the league’s upfront costs and early operations, the people said. That includes team distributions, reserves, marketing capital and staffing. A portion could also be distributed to existing NBA owners as a dividend of sorts.
NBA Europe’s central revenue will include bigger media packages, league-wide sponsorships, merchandise and licensing opportunities, and perhaps some infrastructure projects. Those revenues will be largely transferred back to the teams, essentially via a preferred distribution, the sources said. Initially, more than 80% will go to teams via a fixed payment made to all clubs (similar to the NFL’s annual distributions) and a performance pool, which will filter more money to teams based on their on-court success.
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?NBA Stat?: Summer plans: Victor Wembanyama arrives at the Louis Vuitton Men’s Show in Paris. #NBA
Paris Basketball is exploring a high-profile coaching addition as the club prepares for the next chapter of its project. Paris is in talks with former NBA head coach Dave Joerger, sources tell ESPN's Olgun Uluc and BasketNews. The 52-year-old Minnesota native has been exploring opportunities outside the NBA and is widely expected around the market to emerge as Paris' next bench leader.
Paris is currently coached by 28-year-old Julius Thomas, who took over the team mid-season. However, BasketNews sources indicate that Thomas is expected to leave the organization this summer and is exploring opportunities to join an NBA coaching staff. Former Minnesota Timberwolves executive David Kahn oversees basketball operations in Paris, while the organization has established a growing reputation as a pathway between European basketball and the NBA.
A nine-time NBA champion in the French capital? For a few weeks, Paris believed it. As confirmed to L'Équipe , Steve Kerr, the coach with five championship rings as a player (from 1996 to 1998 with Michael Jordan's Chicago Bulls, in 1999 and in 2003 with the San Antonio Spurs), then four as coach of Golden State (2015, 2017, 2018 and 2022), considered the prospect. Even though the hypothesis never turned into formal negotiation, with the Beirut native ultimately signing a two-year extension with the Warriors, the mere idea of imagining such a strong personality in the world of basketball, still active in the NBA, a key piece in one of its dynasties, is dizzying.