J. Noah: "France can beat anybody"

Special guest on the Tony Parker Show, Chicago Bulls center Joakim Noah is eager to play basketball again. Currently in vacation in Florida, Noah talks about the lockout, the French national team and the 2012 Olympics.

The NBA players have just rejected the owners’ latest offer. Your reaction ?

I’m disapointed. I was ready to play and I really thought a deal would be found. Now, I don’t know what to do. I have no plan.

Let’s change subject and speak about the French national team. What is your best memory of the European Championship last summer (France took silver after losing against Spain in the final) ?

The thing I remember the most is partying in the bus after our win against Russia. We knew then that we were going to the Olympics, which was our main goal. Everybody was singing. It was awesome!

It was your first major event with the French national team. How was it ?

I really enjoyed it. At the beginning, it was hard because I was still recovering from an injury. But the atmosphere in the team was great. And winning games like we did certainly helped. I really had a great time.

What do you expect from the Olympics next summer in London ?

Our goal will be to win a medal. We will be ready. Playing together in the European Championship was truly positive for the team and we just need to prepare ourselves in the best conditions. Next to that, we will be in the Olympic village, surrounded by the greatest athletes in the world. I can’t wait.

What is this French team really capable of ?

We showed the strength of our team during the European Championship. But we still need to improve. We still haven’t played together enough. There is a great generation of players, with Ronny (Turiaf), Boris (Diaw), Tony (Parker). And Nico (Batum) has really raised his level of play. That’s great for French basketball. We need to keep working to take our game to the next level.

What is missing to beat a team like Spain ?

Nothing. Nothing at all. We can beat Spain. Maybe we still need to improve as a team, all together, but I think we can beat nobody.

Playing for French club Paris Levallois is something that could interest you ?

Of course ! At the moment, I’m disappointed. I thought we were going to play NBA basketball again. But I need to take a decision and if I choose to come back in France, Paris Levallois is the team for me.

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