Guerschon Iabusele is enjoying an unforgettable birthday present

Although he only played three minutes this weekend, and none in the final, Guerschon Yabusele he didn’t want to sulk historic victory for the Knicks (their first trophy since 1973) against Spurs Victor Vembanyama.

When we entered the locker room, three French players (Pacom Dadier, Mohamed Diawara, Gershon Yabusele) and German interior Ariel Huckporti smiled and took photos with the NBA Cup. Their victory, however, took time to emerge. Trailing by 11 points in the third quarter in a game played in the wrong rhythm, the Knicks turned up their intensity in the final period to take the decision.

We are a team that decided in the fourth quarter to take shots and stop taking them.Gershon Yabusele explained to us, the championship cap pulled down on his head. “In the end, the team that made the fewest mistakes won. But we all fought together. We had guys from the bench who arrived and brought something strong, not only in attack, but also in defense.”

Mitchell Robinson, Jordan Clarkson and Tyler Kolek were decisive in the final quarter. The captain of the French team, however, had a sincere thought for Victor Vembanyamawho announced at the press conference after the match that he lost someone close to him on Tuesday.

A gift of $500,000

“I know it was not easy for him to play this match”Gershon Jabusele told us. “I wish him a lot of courage. Wemby is first of all a good person, before he was a great basketball player.”

The joy of the captain of the French team was therefore contrasted with the sadness of Victor Wembanyama. By winning the NBA Cup, Nick is in the pocket of more than 500,000 dollars, on the eve of his anniversary.

“It’s the icing on the cake, it makes the victory even sweeter”he laughs. “Tomorrow (Wednesday) I turn 30… I earn half a million… I think I will remember this birthday for a long time. More seriously, I will celebrate with my family. I’m 30 years old, I have children, now it’s different. First I think about my family. I’ll give it to my wife, family, and we’ll see the rest!”

Comments collected in Las Vegas.