Do you remember the time when we talked about a club, Pau-Orthez, and a year, 2007? Or the last French team to have reached the Top 16 of the EuroLeague… The symbol for almost a decade thereafter, until 2016, of the endless disappointments of LNB representatives on the biggest European stage: nine different clubs (Le Mans, Roanne, Nancy, ASVEL, Orléans, Cholet, Chalon, Nanterre, Limoges), several attempts for some, and all were out the door in the first round. Pro A was the dunce of the EuroLeague.
The first season with three French clubs for 25 years
A useful perspective when looking at the 10th day of the EuroLeague, marked not by one, not by two, but by three simultaneous French victories! And against three real greats from Europe, to not spoil anything. It all started Thursday evening with an authoritarian success for AS Monaco in Vitoria (87-75), followed by a great performance from ASVEL against Red Star Belgrade (77-74), before Paris Basketball brings the icing on the cake on Friday, with a huge blow to Barcelona (103-87).
To find traces of a day with three victories labeled Betclic ELITE in the EuroLeague, we had to go back far into the archives. Very far away. Already because we haven't seen three French clubs together in C1 for ages. For 25 years precisely, and the 1999/00 season. That season, ASVEL, Pau-Orthez and Cholet represented Pro A at the highest continental level but they never all had to win in the same week, due in particular to the poor results of CB (3v -13d) and Élan Béarnais (4v-12d), while Villeurbanne reached the quarter-finals. The Grand Slam still came close on January 19, 2000: victories for Pau-Orthez (74-73 against Olympiakos) and ASVEL (65-59 in Podgorica), but defeat in overtime for Cholet against Real Madrid (83-90).
The heirs of Villeurbanne, Limoges and Pau
Again in 1997/98: three French clubs (Limoges, Pau-Orthez, Paris) but no perfect day. No, we had to go back one season further, to 1996/97, a time when the EuroLeague was under the auspices of FIBA. On February 12 and 13, 1997, during the 5th day of the second round, Limoges, Pau-Orthez and Villeurbanne signed the last 3/3 of French basketball in the EuroLeague! That is more than 27 years and 9 months ago… That week began with the victory of Élan Béarnais against Union Olimpija Ljubljana (77-71) before continuing the next day with the combined successes of CSP against Teamsystem Bologna (81-70) and ASVEL at Dynamo Moscow (90-86). The Rhone residents would then continue their road to the Final Four a few months later. That's all the bad we wish for a French team this season… Or even two?!
