Victor Wembanyama wasn’t in the building, but the shadow of his absence dominated large over France’s devastating EuroBasket collapse. Watching from afar as Les Bleus fell 80-70 to Georgia, the 21-year-old Spurs star must have felt the sting just as deeply as the fans back home. France, once seen as a perennial contender, now finds itself out of the quarterfinals for only the second time in the past 25 years. And yes, the frustration spilled over on live cameras, no less.

After the loss, captain Guerschon Yabusele was caught confronting a Georgian journalist who was celebrating loudly. Yabusele’s words were sharp and aggressive as he said, “ Hey, hey, we’re talking here, calm down. You’re the journalist, not a player. ” It was the image of a veteran who had just carried the emotion

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