PARIS (France) - Make it back-to-back Olympic Finals for the United States and France. The two nations played a couple of amazing games at the Olympics in Tokyo, with Kevin Durant and his teammates winning the more important one, taking home gold with an 87-82 win.
They'll have to pull off something similar to win the Olympics for the 17th time. France, meanwhile, are hoping the home crowd could take them to their first gold medal, after they had won silver three times to date.
The game tips off at the Bercy Arena at 21:30 CET on Saturday.
Key matchup
Victor Wembanyama vs LeBron James
After one of Team USA's wins in France, Kevin Durant praised LeBron James for being more than just a basketball player for this team, putting fear into opponent's eyes, making them act differently because they are facing LeBron James.
The same kind of fear factor was palpable as France took on Germany in the Semi-Finals on Thrusday. While Victor Wembanyama's game wasn't full of incredible stats, his ability to get anything around the rim was crucial for France's defense, as the Germans were clearly trying to avoid him and started overthinking on their drives or mismatches.
Both of these stars are able to fill the stat sheets in a hurry, so this matchup won't necessarily be just about who scores more.
LeBron picked up a triple-double in the Semis against Serbia, while Wemby had 11 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 blocks, and he made a big three-pointer to put the game out of Germany's reach.
It's the past and the present of basketball, up against the future of basketball. Given the fact James is 39, sit back, relax and enjoy the view because this could be one of their last matchups, ever.
X-factors
The Other Guys
France tried going with an all-big lineup, pairing up Rudy Gobert and Victor Wembanyama to have 15 feet of paint protection at any moment, but it turned out that offensively they weren't productive enough.
Coach Vincent Collet had a lineup change saved for the biggest games, when the team arrived in Paris. Looking back at the Quarter-Finals and Semi-Finals, it seems like Collet was spot on.
Putting in Guerschon Yabusele gave France a bit more spacing offensively, and his athleticism still allowed them to be a physical defensive team.
Then, out of nowhere, Isaia Cordinier played two incredible elimination games, becoming the firestarter from the outside.
If Cordinier, Yabusele and Mathias Lessort can outperform "the others" from the United States, France could make things interesting in the Final.
Stats don't lie
The goal for France to win this one would be to limit the fast break points, as the United States average 17.4 of those per game, and their big run in the fourth quarter against Serbia was fueled by every error their opponents committed offensively.
Limiting the turnovers and eliminating low quality shots prevents the United States from running.
Good shots are important for France not just because they have a better chance of going in, but also because they are a great offensive rebounding team, picking up 10.8 offensive boards per game, allowing them 15.0 second chance points every night.
That's why the rebounds will unlock this game. If France win them, they'll get second chance opportunities they love so much. If USA win them, they'll get fast break scoring options.
Past matchups
You would think the United States have an advantage in this one over the decade, right? Wrong.
Team USA won the matchup in group stage in Rio de Janeiro in 2016, 100-97 the final score. Kevin Durant scored 17 for the winning side, making all six of his field goal attempts. Nando De Colo had 18 points in 19 minutes for France, Nicolas Batum finished with 14.
In 2019, France dealt a major blow to the United States. In the Quarter-Finals of the FIBA Basketball World Cup in Dongguan, China they had a 26-13 final quarter to win the game 89-79 and send the USA to Classification Games 5-8.
Evan Fournier led the way with 22 points, Rudy Gobert had 21 with 16 rebounds and 3 blocks, Frank Ntilikina was big down the stretch with 11 points, and De Colo had 18 points off the bench.
Derrick White scored 4 points in a losing effort, Jayson Tatum did not enter the game.
France made it back-to-back wins over the USA at the 2020 Olympics in Japan. The teams met in group stage, Vincent Collet's men created separation in the third quarter and stormed away for an 83-76 win.
Fournier scored 28 in that one, Gobert had 14 with 9 rebounds, De Colo did a bit of everything with 13 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists. Jrue Holiday was the best player on the other side of the floor with 18 points, while Bam Adebayo picked up a 12-point, 10-rebound double-double.
But the United States did not allow France to win three straight, taking the Final in Tokyo 87-82. Kevin Durant took over, counted to 29, Jayson Tatum offered a helping hand off the bench with 19, and Holiday had 11.
Fournier and Gobert led five men in double digits for France with 16 each.
The score is tied at 2-2 since 2016, but before that, it was all about the USA, including the 2000 Olympics Final, which they won 106-94.
And you want to spice things up a little? Remember, Kevin Durant didn't like losing to France and he mentioned it the year after Tokyo.
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