France qualified for the Olympics by beating Canada on Sunday — then within 48 hours got a lot better.
Utah’s shot-blocking beast in the paint Rudy Gobert sat out Olympic qualifying but announced on Twitter he would join France in Brazil.
C'est avec plaisir que j'annonce que je serai présent à Rio avec mes frères pour défendre les couleurs de la France! #RoadToRio 🇫🇷🇫🇷🇫🇷
— Rudy Gobert (@rudygobert27) July 11, 2016
Translated: “It is with pleasure that I announce that I will be in Rio with my brothers to defend the colors of France!”
Apparently, he’s not going to wait to have a contract extension in hand before playing.
France had Tony Parker, Nicolas Batum, Boris Diaw, and Olympic Qualifying Tournament MVP Nando De Colo on the roster already. After earning a berth in the Rio games the French coach said he would considering adding Gobert to help them in the paint. However, he did not want to change the guard rotation, which likely leaves Orlando’s Evan Fournier on the outside looking in.
The Olympic basketball tournament tips off Aug. 6. The heavy favorite USA squad is in France’s bracket and the two play on Aug. 14.