The Washington Wizards have two players who will be competing in the upcoming EuroBasket tournament: Alex Sarr and Bilal Coulibaly. They will be representing their country of France during the offseason. Sarr and Coulibaly balled out in France’s first showing of the summer against Montenegro. Now heading into the EuroBasket group phase, France is certainly one of the teams to beat, with Sarr and Coulibaly being strong contributors.
Alex Sarr and Bilal Coulibaly Shine In France’s EuroBasket Prep Game
Alex Sarr
Sarr, who made his national debut, dominated in France’s 81-75 win against Montenegro. He played just a smidge under 14 minutes, but was France’s leading scorer with 19 points. Additionally, he was incredibly efficient, shooting 70% from the field and 60% from three-point range. He added four rebounds to his strong offensive outing.
Sarr has played well over the summer. Before heading to play internationally, he set the Summer League block record while continuing to provide positive impact on both ends of the floor. EuroBasket will continue to give him ample opportunities, as several players from both the NBA and the surrounding European leagues will be looking to throw multiple looks his way to try and slow down his diverse offensive skillset.
Bilal Coulibaly
For Coulibaly, EuroBasket will give him an opportunity to continue to work back to being fully healthy after going down in March with a hamstring injury. He played 15 minutes of action against Montenegro and scored 10 points with three rebounds. He also shot the ball very efficiently, with a strong 80% from the field, and made both of his three-point attempts.
Coulibaly should certainly see the floor more as the team prepares for EuroBasket, and he’ll need to continue to show this efficient scoring. His defense will always be his strong suit, but growing his offensive game may keep his starting spot secured for Washington’s long-term future.
France Outlook in EuroBasket
France is currently the third-ranked nation playing in EuroBasket. They will be playing in Group D for the group phase of EuroBasket 2025. Group D consists of France, Belgium, Slovenia, Israel, Poland, and Iceland. Their group features some quality NBA talent, both active and former players alike.
Deni Avdija, Ben Saraf, T.J. Leaf, and Yam Madar will represent Israel. Jeremy Sochan will be playing for Poland. Slovenia has the second most NBA talent in Group D after France with Vlatko Čančar, Zoran Dragic, and Luka Doncic. France is favored to win every game and should breeze into the bracket.
France’s hardest challenge in the group phase will be Slovenia, with Doncic possibly being a completely different beast than last NBA season.
The Last Word
Looping all of this to Washington, the Wizards should be ecstatic with Coulibaly and Sarr’s recent showings heading into EuroBasket. To see two of your hopeful future cornerstones taking leaps in the offseason is a great sign. Sarr and Coulibaly can continue to grow their games against some of the best players from around the world, which usually translates very well to the NBA hardwood. Hopefully, Sarr and Coulibaly can showcase themselves enough to attract a real star next offseason.
Photo credit: © Geoff Burke-Imagn Images
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