France vs. Canada: Predicted starting 5s and depth chart | Basketball Showcase Game (July 19, 2024)
France's national team will play against Canada in an exhibition match on Friday ahead of the 2024 Paris Olympics. The two top squads will tip off at 3 p.m. EST in London as part of a friendly tournament hosted by the UK.
The teams last played each other in the 2023 FIBA World Cup, with Canada dominating in a 95-65 victory. Oklahoma City guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 27 points, grabbed 13 rebounds, and dished out six assists in the win.
While Canada's squad is relatively similar this summer, France's squad last year was missing several of their top players, including 7-foot-5 San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama.
Canada has played just one exhibition match this summer, a July 10 friendly against Team USA in Las Vegas, which they lost 86-72. Gilgeous-Alexander struggled with all eyes on him, finishing with just eight points.
Canada will have their hands full with their slightly undersized front court, with players like Dwight Powell and Kelly Olynyk needing to go up against Wembanyama and 7-foot-1 center Rudy Gobert.
France is 2-1 in exhibition matches played in July, dropping their last match to Nikola Jokic's Serbian squad by a score of 79-67. They had a smooth victory over Germany on July 6, winning 90-66, and handled Turkey on July 3 by a score of 96-46.
Wembanyama led them in their last game with 14 points and 10 rebounds.
France vs. Canada: Starting lineups and Depth chart
France has a handful of NBA players, led by Minnesota Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert and Wembenyama. It's unclear who will ultimately start in their first match of the Olympics, but their depth chart has looked like the following so far in international play:
France's depth chart
Canada depth chart
The Canadian national team boasts the most NBA talent in the tournament outside of Team USA. They're led by 2023–24 MVP runner-up Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of the Oklahoma City Thunder and 2022–23 NBA champion guard Jamal Murray from the Denver Nuggets.
The French team will play their first match of the 2024 Paris Olympics on July 27 against Brazil. They're part of Group B, which includes Germany and Japan.
Canada is in Group A for the tournament, regarded as the top group that also includes Spain, Australia and Greece. They play their first match against Greece on July 27.