Frederic Fauthoux broke down the reasons that led him to the decision to leave Nadir Hifi and Sylvain Francisco out of the upcoming FIBA EuroBasket qualifying window. The coach of the French NT also addressed Moustapha Fall's absence and hinted at the center's uncertain future with the squad.
France national team head coach Frederic Fauthoux has unveiled his list of 12 players for the last qualifying window for the EuroBasket 2025.
During the upcoming window, France will play their final qualification games for the 2025 EuroBasket against Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina.
While not officially qualified for the tournament yet, France has won all their matches in these qualifiers and needs one more win to officially seal its presence in the main tournament.
The French tactician explained in particular the arrival of Neal Sako and the two notable absences of Sylvain Francisco and Nadir Hifi.
Fauthoux admitted that he seriously considered including Hifi and Francisco in his list, but decided otherwise, since Elie Okobo was selected instead.
"On both cases, it has been a real headache since we are talking about players who perform with their respective clubs," Fauthoux conceded in an interview with Bebasket's Alexandre Lacoste.
"These are players that we will surely see later. I know Elie very well and I know how he plays. I see what he is doing at the club with his new coach (Vassilis Spanoulis), which can also correspond to what we are doing. All these criteria are taken into account," he explained, before adding that he called Hifi, who appeared "ultra-motivated, albeit a little disappointed."
The squad that will compete in next February's window features a total of 8 EuroLeague players. That's a luxury for any team, but it was made possible since the top continental competition will take a 3-week break and players will be available to join their respective national teams.
"We are lucky to have a lot of very good players in France. But we also wanted to have continuity in our work. We have to keep our bearings in the game, that's why there are 4 players from the November window who have been called up again (Andrew Albicy, Adam Mokoma, Amine Noua and Yoan Makoundou)," Fauthoux said.
The only new addition is ASVEL's Neal Sako, who's having a solid EuroLeague rookie season. However, Fauthoux didn't hide that his first choice was different.
"We talked a little with Mous (Fall)," he revealed.
"He doesn't feel too much like being part of the team this time, so we respect the player's choice. He was injured in the summer, he is feeling well at the moment and he wanted to stay well for his club," Fauthoux said of Olympiacos Piraeus' center.
"For his part, Neal also performs and plays in the EuroLeague, so we wanted to see him," he went on to say.
"What has also worked in his favor is that he has been playing with Theo (Maledon) since the beginning of the season. It's easier when you have guys who play in the same club," the 52-year-old play-caller argued.
Nevertheless, it's still unclear whether Moustapha Fall's refusal to join France will extend beyond the upcoming window.
"I called him to find out. We have to ask him," Fauthoux replied.
"I believe that all the players who play and perform will be likely to be called up. We also have to talk to them, because we know very well how it works: if they want to come, do they also want to come to play a back-up role or not?
We don't necessarily have time today to elaborate on that. That's why we want to see as many players as possible," he said.
Among the call-ups, Evan Fournier's stands out. The guard of Olympiacos Piraeus recently revealed that he had a discussion with Fauthoux about his presence in the next qualifying window and confirmed that he'll be there.
"He is excellent. Now he's playing, and he's performing well. It would still have been a shame to deprive ourselves of him, wouldn't it?" he wondered.
Three players have also been selected as training partners: Strasbourg center Brice Dessert (21 years old), Cholet winger Mohamed Diawara (19) and St-Quentin point guard Nolan Traore (18), who is expected to be a high pick in the next NBA draft.
The French team is currently first in Group E, with four wins in four games, and winning just one of its last two games in February will open the doors to the EuroBasket (from August 27 to September 14 in Latvia, Cyprus, Finland and Poland).
France's 12-man squad in the last FIBA window:
- Andrew Albicy (Gran Canaria)
- Isaia Cordinier (Virtus Bologna)
- Evan Fournier (Olympiacos Piraeus)
- Jaylen Hoard (Maccabi Tel Aviv)
- Yoan Makoundou (Turk Telekom)
- Theo Maledon (ASVEL)
- Adam Mokoka (Cluj-Napoca)
- Amine Noua (Granada)
- Elie Okobo (Monaco)
- Vincent Poirier (Anadolu Efes)
- Neal Sako (ASVEL)
- Matthew Strazel (Monaco)
