Just a year after reaching the Olympic final on home soil in Paris, France’s national basketball team now faces a growing crisis ahead of EuroBasket 2025.
On Monday, the French squad confirmed it will be without another key player for the upcoming tournament, as center Mathias Lessort has been ruled out due to injury. Lessort, who formerly played for Maccabi Tel Aviv and now suits up for Panathinaikos, broke his left leg during a EuroLeague game last December. After joint assessments by medical teams from both his Greek club and the French national team, it was decided he would not take part in the competition to avoid risking further injury.
Lessort’s absence compounds an already difficult situation for France, who are drawn into Group D of EuroBasket 2025, set to begin in a month and a half. The team will also be missing two of its biggest stars—NBA players Victor Wembanyama and Rudy Gobert—both sidelined with serious injuries.
In Lessort’s place, France may turn to another former Maccabi Tel Aviv player, Jaylen Hoard, to fill the void under the rim.
These developments could benefit Israel, who share Group D with France along with Slovenia, Poland, Belgium, and Iceland. With several of France’s top players sidelined, the competition in the group stage could become far more balanced than initially expected.