This Thursday evening, the fourth edition of the NBA Paris Games begins with the first of two confrontations between Victor Wembanyama’s Spurs and Tyrese Haliburton’s Pacers. It’s the big night for “Wemby”, the attraction of this global event.
NBA star Victor Wembanyama is back in France as part of the fourth edition of the NBA Paris Games. Facing the Indiana Pacers of famous leader Tyrese Haliburton, the Frenchman and his partners from the San Antonio Spurs will play two matches: this Thursday evening (8 p.m.) and this Saturday (6 p.m.). This Wednesday evening, the French basketball prodigy was on the 8 p.m. news on TF1. Interviewed by Gilles Boulleau, “Wemby” has one desire: he wants “make basketball more prominent in French culture” : “I want to change basketball. It all depends on the meaning you put into it. I dare to hope to change French basketball, with the help of influential people in French basketball and sport.” According to him, the NBA Paris Games scheduled in France contribute to this quest to make basketball even more popular in the country. “Certainly, there is the French public who are loyal to the NBA, but there are also those who don’t necessarily know it, who only know the big names and who we are trying to bring together. If I could, Spurs would play in Paris every year.”
Message sent to Team USA!
Back at Bercy where he lost in the final of the 2024 Olympics against Team USA, Victor Wembanyama told our colleagues at TF1 that he is very happy to set foot again at the Accor Arena even if he intends, this time, to win in the Parisian venue: “There are still some decorations from the Olympic Games in the corridors of the hall, it’s nice to come back here, not only after the Olympics but the other times I played here before. It’s a hall that is close to my heart It’s very important to have a good performance. We have a series of two matches and we have to be focused, come in with a state of mind where we don’t think two matches in advance, but just the next one. context is incredible for me, but my responsibility is to my team and my coaches I am fully focused on tactics.
Asked about the 2028 Olympics which will take place in Los Angeles, Victor Wembanyama has already set the scene and sent a message to Anthony Edwards, Jayson Tatum and the American superstars: “Of course it’s possible, and as a French team, when we enter a competition, it’s only to win it, nothing else, and I hope to play my part.”
A busy schedule
In Paris, “Wemby” made the rounds of the festivities. Present at the Louis Vuitton Fashion Week show alongside actors Bradley Cooper, Omar Sy and businessman Bernard Arnault, the Frenchman also attended PSG – Manchester City this Wednesday with his partners. The former Nanterre 92 player also inaugurated two basketball courts in his hometown of Chesnay-Rocquencourt (Yvelines). The opportunity to chat for a few minutes with dozens of dismissed children: “It was a dream for me to have a quality self-service field to practice on when I was little.”declared Victor Wembanyama at the origin of the project.
What time does the NBA Paris Games start?
The start of the first match of the NBA Paris Games between the San Antonio Spurs of Frenchman Victor Wembanyama and the Indiana Pacers of Tyrese Haliburton is scheduled this Thursday January 23 at 8 p.m.at the Accor Arena in Paris.
On which channel to watch the NBA Paris Games?
Holder of TV rights for the NBA Paris Games, Canal+ will broadcast the two posters unencrypted.
How to follow the NBA Paris Games in streaming?
If you want to watch the first poster of the NBA Paris Games in 2025 between the Spurs and the Pacers on your computer, smartphone or tablet, you will need to take out a subscription on MyCanal.
What are the five majors of the San Antonio Spurs and Indiana Pacers?
Spurs: Paul, Vassell, Castle, Barnes, Wembanyama.
Pacers: Haliburton, Sheppard, Mathurin, Siakam, Turner.
What are the NBA Paris Games predictions?
- Betclic: Spurs: 2.18 / Pacers: 1.69
- Bwin: Spurs: 2.15 / Pacers: 1.72
- Online Sports Bet: Spurs: 2.05 / Pacers: 1.73
- Unibet: Spurs: 2.02 / Pacers: 1.71