[KB21]

I've noticed that Mickael Gelebale has popped up on the list of prospects.

Boris Diaw has probably been the best international player as a rookie this season. His offense isn't there yet, but he's a lock down defender and a very smart player.

How many French prospects are out there that are flying under the radar, so to speak?

 

[rebelsun]

I don't know if it's becoming a "hotbed," but France is producing some very good players lately. Parker, Diaw, Pietrus and Moiso (isn't Tariq Abdul-Wahad originally French?) are already in the league. Petro and Turiaf will very likely see the league, and Gelebale may see it as well. France is not quite yet on par w/ Serbia as far as producing pro talent, but they seem to definitely be improving.

 

[rlucas4257]

you know, i follow french ball closely. I cant believe Florent Pietrus isnt playing for someone in the league. Its only a matter of time. he and Mickael will both be good players, in Mickaels case, very good. Diaw is filling up boxscores, except scoting. how about Sani as well? He is a good player. Tahirou Sani is a name to remember. I see Johan Petro in the top 5 picked next year. Next years NBA draft is going to be all internationals with Yi Jianlin, Petro, Nemanja and maybe Samardzinski

 

[Matiz]

I cant believe Florent Pietrus isnt playing for someone in the league.

He is very athletic, I like him a lot, but he is also undersized powerforward... maybee one of the reasons he didn't make it to the nba team is he was always 5th or 6th option for his team- that leads me to conclusion that he is afterall not good enough for nba...

 

[KB21]

One of the differences I see in the French players coming to the league and some of the other European players coming to the league is the French players seem much more defensive oriented. Boris Diaw has gone up against some of the better scores in the league and has held them to 4-18 shooting nights. This guy can flat out defend.

It seems like the French players have a high skill level to go along with terrific athleticism. They seem to be a good blend of the American players and the other European players.

 

[falsestart]

Yeah France is a hotbed for a...soccer talents(Therry Henry and Zinedine Zidane are great players)
But in basketball i don't remember anyone except Parker and Abdul-Wahad

 

[macijauskas1]

France haven't even qualified for Olimpic Games !!! And France basketball traditions and school are not so good as Yugoslavian, Spain or Lithuania.

 

[Nimreitz]

Originally posted by <b>falsestart</b>!
(Therry Henry and Zinedine Zidane are great players)

Really? Is that why they held the World Cup and European Championship at the same time? This news about Henry and Zidane is ground breaking!!

Incidentally Henry is pretty good friends with Tony Parker, so you sometimes see him with courtside seats at a Spurs game.

 

[Matiz]

France haven't even qualified for Olimpic Games !!! And France basketball traditions and school are not so good as Yugoslavian, Spain or Lithuania.

... and they played better bball than Spain (2nd), but lost to Lithuania (it was close...) and players were than too dissapointed and lost against Italy... which actually doesn't have nothing incommon with France being a hotbed of talents.
And with all those players french bball produced last few years we can say they have one of the best schools in europe- While Yugoslavia is untouchable first.

 

[ballstorm]

French BBall school is so young. It was deeply changed in the last past years in order to be able to compete with the european best teams , such as serbia or lithuania. For a short period of time , each french pro team has the obligation to take part in a "prospect" championship . In the same time , best projects players are recruited by the french national institute of sports (INSEP).Tony parker was a member of the INSEP and Boris Diaw too . Petro was also in the INSEP last year. (one of the interesting particularities of the INSEP is that the players (15-18 years old) take part in an "amateur" championship of good level , which means that they play against men , not kids. No more physically dominant).
This is a rather short and foggy summary but i think that the changes operated in the formation can partly explain his success.

 

[AMR]

French players are more 'american' than 'european', but only the black players.. while Rigaudeau or Foirest are typical European players, Abdul-Wahad, Pietrus, Diaw and all the future prospect are the kind of athletic and defensive players but without a good offense that aren't very common in Europe, so France will produce a lot of players for the NBA but a French team will never win the Euroleague...

 

[ChitwoodStyle]

France does seem to have produced a good deal of nba talented players, but the majority seem to be athletic like the Americans and lately the Argentinians. France will continue to be a major team in the Euro play all they don't have is a true dominate player like Gasol or Jaskas or Bodiroga. France is full of young athletic players and then the older talented basketball players.

 

[ballstorm]

Originally posted by <b>AMR</b>!
French players are more 'american' than 'european', but only the black players.. while Rigaudeau or Foirest are typical European players, Abdul-Wahad, Pietrus, Diaw and all the future prospect are the kind of athletic and defensive players but without a good offense that aren't very common in Europe, so France will produce a lot of players for the NBA but a French team will never win the Euroleague...

You think that the black players coming from france can't be offensively efficient?

1/ please avoid to judge a player according to he is black or not and to assert so flatly such a debatable opinion. I would even prefer that you just assert that all of the french players can't be offensively efficient. This is definitively a matter of formation , no more.
2/The french formation insist a lot on defense but not totally blind concerning the offense . Players such as Mike pietrus , from guadeloupe , is very talented offensively and not only defensively. .Tony parker is quite good offensively , no?
3/ "all the future prospects"... "france will"..are you sort of a prophesier?

 

[Amareca]

Originally posted by <b>rlucas4257</b>!
you know, i follow french ball closely. I cant believe Florent Pietrus isnt playing for someone in the league. Its only a matter of time. he and Mickael will both be good players, in Mickaels case, very good. Diaw is filling up boxscores, except scoting. how about Sani as well? He is a good player. Tahirou Sani is a name to remember. I see Johan Petro in the top 5 picked next year. Next years NBA draft is going to be all internationals with Yi Jianlin, Petro, Nemanja and maybe Samardzinski

Oh man, blabla.

Florent was on the Suns summer team and he sucked.

Before the draft you kept saying that Pietrus would be like Ray Allen and Desmond Mason or something. :laugh:

Diaw isn't the best foreign rookie in this draft either. That would have to go to Barbosa and Zarko was also better before he got injured by Fortson.

I can't believe how you keep hyping players that you may have never seen or only a couple of times against bad competition.

 

[ChitwoodStyle]

I don't think he meant to be racist, but as opposed to the majority of European countries France seems to have quite a few athletes of African descent. France isn't lacking in producing talented caucasians, like Foriesant (i know that isn't close to spelling it right) and Rigadeau. But for americans who don't know or see these players the French athletes that we know play an american up tempo high offensive game. From personal experience while i was in Paris the basketball i saw being played was very similar to american streetball. His comment about France never winning is ridiculous, they are a very solid team, but do need a guy who can take over and get it done when needs be.

 

[Big John]

Originally posted by <b>ChitwoodStyle</b>!
I don't think he meant to be racist, but as opposed to the majority of European countries France seems to have quite a few athletes of African descent.

Well of course. France had large colonial holdings in Africa (Chad, Cameroon, Senegal, Mali, etc.) , not to mention Carribean islands like Guadeloupe, which produced Diaw and Moiso.

 

[AMR]

I wasn't racist!

I didn't say that black players can't be good offensively, this would be stupid... I say that the had a best athleticism so in France they develop MOST african descent players to defensive or slashing players, not really the european stereotype...

And it'll take a lot of time for a French team to win the Euroleague (club league, not national teams league), I think this statement isn't ridiculous

 

[cherokeejack]

Originally posted by <b>Big John</b>!


Well of course. France had large colonial holdings in Africa (Chad, Cameroon, Senegal, Mali, etc.) , not to mention Carribean islands like Guadeloupe, which produced Diaw and Moiso.

Pietrus is also listed as being from Guadeloupe and I think Sani is from Mali. Tony Parker's father is from the U.S. and his mother is from Amsterdam. Many of these "French" prospects seem to be from outside of France. Kind of like how Tim Duncan and Hakeem Olajuwan have represented the U.S. in international competition but aren't really American players. And, like the French prospects, they did learn how to play basketball in their adopted country.

 

[Matiz]

And it'll take a lot of time for a French team to win the Euroleague (club league, not national teams league), I think this statement isn't ridiculous

All they need is money- which comes together with interest for basketball- it's not hard to buy 3-4 really good players (it is expensive though) and then win Euroleague!?! only exception I remember was Zalgiris few years ago...
This statement isn't ridiculous, because I don't think anyone in France has intention on spending large ammounts on basketball.

 

[ballstorm]

-Mike Pietrus comes from Guadeloupe . he arrived in france in 1997. he was 15 years old. Then he played for Pau orthez for 6 years until the 2003 draft.

-jerome Moiso was borned in paris in 1978. his relations come from guadeloupe . he learned the game partly in the INSEP (french sport institute) until 1997, like Parker and diaw , and Petro . After INSEP , he went to the USA .(milford academy/UCLA).

-Boris diaw does not come from guadeloupe. His mother , Miss Riffiod is probably the best Center either in the french bball history and a french citizen . His father in a senegalese and a former high jump champion.

the had a best athleticism so in France they develop MOST african descent players to defensive or slashing players, not really the european stereotype...

AMR : please stop inflicting us yours doubtful thinkings . Do you have heard of Paccelis Morlende (drafted in the 2003 second round?) . he is a versatile PG with a very complete offensive game. Did you heard of Mickael gelabale? Stephane risacher? Mamoutou diarra? ..... Do you think that they all are only defensive players?

And it'll take a lot of time for a French team to win the Euroleague (club league, not national teams league), I think this statement isn't ridiculous

this is the less ridiculous of yours statements so far , but this is irrelevant. French teams don't lose because they are educating "defensive players". the reality is much more complicated.

I know you did not intend to be hurtful . just be relevant.