Europe 1 with AFP 11:30 p.m., December 29, 2022

The show and the win: driven by Victor Wembanyama, the French selection won the Elite All Star Game to the delight of the 16,000 spectators gathered at Paris Bercy on Thursday for the great annual celebration of French basketball.

For its 36th edition, the LNB All Star Game has once again filled up at Bercy.

And with guest star Victor Wembanyama, the party could not be more beautiful.

In the queue, a few hours before the big show, despite the Lakers caps, Bulls jerseys and other NBA franchises, it is the French phenomenon of 18 years and 2.21 m, promised to a great future, which the French spectators had come to admire.

"It's not just him, he's not going to play alone" jokes Frédéric, who came as a guide for the basketball club of Neuville-sur-Escaut (Hauts-de-France), of which a hundred members came attend the All Star Game.

"But we know that this is his last year in France," he admits.

“Wemby” being watched by all the American franchises for the next draft, “after that you will have to cross the Atlantic to see him”.

"We'll see what happens, the LNB and the NBA are not the same thing," said Rayan, a 17-year-old high school student with a Boston Celtics jacket on his back, who came to see the native of Chesnay play ( Yvelines) for the first time.

By way of introduction, it was with the competition of the leaders that the Bercy public quickly warmed up, a test of skill and speed combining slalom and shots and won by the American from Cholet TJ Campbell.

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Show

A dance interlude later, the star of the evening appeared to a standing ovation to take part in the three-point shots event in which Wembanyama finished last against players more experienced in this exercise in the league, including the winner, l French back Nicolas Lang, from Limoges.

Rather diesel than all fire, the strong winger from Boulogne-Levallois took a little time to get into the match against the foreign selection, like the French team, largely dominated in the first quarter- time (43-28) in particular because of a high-flying James Palmer Junior (18 points, 30 in total).

The French team, led by the Bosnian Nenad Markovic, the coach of Dijon, replacing that of the Mets de Boulogne-Levallois Vincent Collet, sick, woke up in the second quarter, slightly reducing its delay (75- 64).

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barefoot dunk

Called upon for the spectacular dunk contest at the break, Wembanyama allowed Yves Pons to cross the first round to the applause meter, the Asvel winger jumping above the giant who held the ball for him to dunk.

Before Pons won the final by dunking barefoot.

During the third quarter, Wemby showed the extent of his palette: three-point basket, pass behind the back for an award-winning basket from Hugo Besson... before scoring the equalizing basket, and giving the advantage to the French for the first time in the match on a free throw (87-86).

Still rising in power, Wembanyama largely contributed (27 points) to the final victory of the French selection (136 to 128) and was logically named MVP (best player of the match), in a delighted Bercy.

A victory without stake, but full of promise for an audience already conquered by the phenomenon.