The 41st edition of the EuroBasket certainly hasn’t disappointed us, as we have been treated to some thrilling action over the last two weeks or so. NBA stars Giannis Antetokounmpo, Luka Doncic, and Nikola Jokic put in some sensational performances, but none of them will be playing in the grand finale.
Jokic was the first to be eliminated as Serbia lost in the Round of 16 to Italy, while both Giannis and Luka exited at the quarter-final stage. They now get to sit at home and watch as the two European basketball powerhouses square off in the final as Spain takes on France.
Bismack Biyombo Deletes Controversial Tweet In Which He Stated That The Final Is Between Spain And Africa
Spain defeated Germany, who had eliminated Greece, in the semifinals to make it while the French crushed Poland 95-54 in the other semifinal. Before Slovenia won the last edition in 2017, Spain or France had come out on top in 4 successive tournaments, with the Spanish winning in 2009, 2011, and 2015 while the French were victorious in 2013. These two met in the 2011 Final as well, so after Spain won the second semifinal, Nicolas Batum put out a tweet asking if anyone expected a different matchup in the final, to which Bismack Biyombo jokingly responded by stating it is Spain vs Africa.
Bismack Biyombo tiene a toda Francia rabiando. Padre pic.twitter.com/vMkW86HKcI
— Pasion Basket (@PasionBasketNBA) September 17, 2022
The joke here is that a lot of the French players are of African descent, which is actually the case in quite a few sports for France. The joke did not sit well with a lot of people, however, and Biyombo had to delete it because of all the backlash coming his way. He put out another tweet stating it was something he often jokes about with the French players.
Cmon guys you can’t be serious, I understand this is sensitive for some but it was nothing but a joke I have friend and ex teammates that are French and from somewhere in africa or have both passport! Honestly is was nothing but a joke.. let’s just stop here 🤦🏾♂️
— Bismack Biyombo (@bismackbiyombo) September 17, 2022
“Cmon guys you can’t be serious, I understand this is sensitive for some but it was nothing but a joke I have friend and ex teammates that are French and from somewhere in africa or have both passport! Honestly is was nothing but a joke.. let’s just stop here ♂️”
You can understand why certain sections of people would have been offended by it and internal jokes should perhaps just be kept away from social media. It is clear the French players aren’t offended by it, though, with Evan Fournier telling Biyombo to not worry about it.
It just seems like a rough time for those associated with the Phoenix Suns, after owner Robert Sarver was suspended for a year and fined $10 million by the NBA for workplace misconduct. The league is facing a lot of backlash for the lenient punishment they dished out and there are also growing calls for Sarver to resign.
