PARIS (France) - Rudy Gobert has almost done it all with France.
The towering center has reached the podium at FIBA Basketball World Cups, FIBA EuroBaskets and Olympic Games. He's been named to All-Star Fives at events and had numerous highlights. Remember his swat of Pau Gasol in Gobert's first World Cup in Madrid, which helped propel his team to victory in that Quarter-Final?
He's collected Olympic silver medals (2021 and 2024), finished third at the World Cups (2014 and 2019) and finished third at FIBA EuroBasket 2015 and second at FIBA EuroBasket 2022.
What Gobert has not done with his national team, however, is win it all.
Championships have eluded him.
And when he didn't play for France last summer at the FIBA EuroBasket in Poland and then Latvia, it seemed like his career with the Les Bleus might have come to an end.
I want to help France win titles
Yet Gobert, 33, remains all in when it comes to the French.
When he was asked if he wants to play next summer in the European Qualifiers for the 2027 World Cup, then at the event in Qatar and after that, at the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028, his answer is crystal clear.
"That’s the goal," he said to www.lequipe.fr. "I want to help France win titles, and I want to do everything possible to make that happen. I want to contribute at all of these events, and I hope I’ll be able to.
"An Olympic gold medal is something you dream about. It’s a goal, and I sincerely believe we can achieve it."
Gobert had a diminished role at the 2024 Olympics in France, where he came off the bench instead of starting and played less minutes.
In the biggest national team tournament of his life, Gobert focused on helping the team win.
"I mainly made sure to control what I could," he said. "Whether you agree or not, whether you think it's beneficial for the team or not, you have a duty to give your best.
"I had injured a finger, needed seven stitches, and I was even having trouble catching the ball. We had a very talented team, and even when things aren’t going your way, you have to show that you’re there no matter what. If there are conversations to be had, they’re for after the competition, at the right time."
It wasn't easy being on the bench during important moments of some games, especially in the Gold Medal Game against the USA. The Americans won that game, 98-87.
"I would have liked to have played in the fourth quarter against the Americans," he said. "I was on the court in the third, and we managed to go on a small run. Then I didn’t step back onto the floor against guys I've been playing against for more than 10 years.
"Even without playing (at the Olympics) as much as I would have liked, I tried to lead by example, to be a leader. And I'm proud of what we achieved together."
Gobert elected not to play EuroBasket 2025 and instead concentrated on getting ready for this NBA season with the Minnesota Timberwolves. He was missed.
The French had one of the most talented teams in the tournament, yet fell to Georgia in the Round of 16.
France did have some battle-hardened players in that team, but maybe not enough.
Evan Fournier, who was also missing from last summer's squad, says players that have competed in national team tournaments before are invaluable.
"When it comes to managing a tournament, understanding how a do-or-die game works - you need experience," he said.
Like Gobert, Fournier is eyeing a return to the team.
Without Gobert and Fournier in the first window of the European Qualifiers, France won at home against Belgium, 79-63, but fell at Finland, 83-76, despite leading by as many as 10 points in the game.
The French will take on Hungary twice in the next window, in Szombathely on February 27 and then in Le Mans, France, on March 1.
Gobert would be able to play in the third international window against Belgium (July 3) and Finland (July 6), the last two games of the First Round.
Gobert insists his days in international basketball are not over.
"The French national team is still just as important to me," he said.
"Everything I do today, everything I invest in my body, is also so I can come back and perform well with it. And win with it."
FIBA