PARIS (France) - Dirk Nowitzki has enjoyed watching both the men's and women's national teams of Germany at the Olympic Basketball Tournaments Paris 2024 in Bercy Arena and in La Concorde for the 3x3.
With both squads making it to the Quarter-Finals of their respective competitions so far, the German basketball legend shares his thought on who he sees ending up on the podium.
Let's start with the Men where Germany will face France this afternoon.
"Well, I think we [Germany] have had a great tournament so far," said Nowitzki. "We've obviously carried the momentum from the last few years. Bronze in the EuroBasket, World Champs last year.
"And then we carried that momentum over with basically the same team. So we've had a good group.
While he's optimistic about the men's chances, Nowitzki also realizes that it's a highly competitive playing field in the Semi-Finals - albeit with one contender standing out.
Germany's looking strong
"I think we're looking strong, but the top four will be hard. I think there's four good teams, four good countries to me. Slightly favored is still USA with the team that they brought, with the talent pool they have. I would definitely say USA are the heavy favorites.
"But after that, I think anything's possible."
Germany's opponents in the Semi-Finals won't make it easy for them to advance. They are paired to face hosts of the Olympic Games, France, in what is expected to be an exciting clash.
"Now, I think France didn't play super great. Not in a Group Phase, not leading up to the tournament. I think they found something in last game against Canada. I thought they played well, the energy was there. I think they played better together. I think they made some, some slight changes in the lineup. So to me, that's as strong as I've looked this summer so far. And they're on home soil so that's gonna be a battle. That's gonna be a great test for a good German team. It'll be fun."
"And I have USA beating Serbia but Serbia is really strong and a great team."
In the end, Nowitzki is not shy about being a homer when making predictions.
"If you asked me to say predictions, I would say USA vs Germany in the Final. And Germany, hopefully getting close, but I would say USA taking gold."
For the women's team, Dirk is look forward to see how far they can go after a great first appearance at the Olympics and a Women's World Cup in Berlin in 2026.
"We're excited. This is the best generation we've ever had also for Germany women's. We've always talked about the men's team being the best team we've ever had. But this is really the first time the women's are at an Olympics and we just won the 3x3 Women's gold. So, overall basketball in Germany, right now is, as hot as I've ever seen it and it's ever been.
For Germany, we're super excited
"We're super excited about the opportunities that for both men and women that are coming."
FIBA