By Stefan Acevski/ info@eurohoops.net
France is set to face Slovenia in a FIBA WC qualifying match in Paris on Thursday (8:30 PM CEST), and now the 12 players that coach Frederic Fauthoux will rely on are known.
The roster previously included 15 players who played two games against Serbia in recent days, and now it is down to 12 who will face Slovenia.
It is no surprise that Axel Bouteille and Yves Pons did not make the cut, but it is intriguing that Nadir Hifi, the second-highest scorer in the EuroLeague last season, is not on the list.
Hifi struggled in recent matches in the French jersey, did not play in the second game against Serbia, and will now miss the qualifying match, where a win for France would boost their chances of making it to the World Cup.
Coach Frederic Fauthoux recently spoke about the situation with Hifi.
“It’s complicated to play with two small guards at the same time. Choices have to be made. For the moment, perhaps Sylvain (Francisco) fits this team better. We talked with Nadir. He had good training sessions. It’s a very personal choice for me: perhaps today, his style of play does not yet fully align with what we want to implement, to perform as he can with Paris, with the players he has around him. Now, he absolutely must not change his game, he remains an exceptional player and knows how to play like that with Paris. Today, the choice is made for the time being with Matthew and Sylvain at the same position.”
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