The most popular sport in Korea is professional baseball. However, if you expand your horizons to the rest of the world, there are very few countries that play professional baseball. Baseball won’t be featured in the Olympics either. Instead, basketball, along with soccer, is the most popular sport. Basketball, in particular, is a star-studded sport.
On the European stage, soccer is arguably the most popular sport. However, the Olympic Games are different. This is because most of the teams are made up of prospects, and the stars of the sport compete in the European Championship (Euro), Copa America, or the World Cup. That”s why basketball, with its superstars from the National Basketball Association (NBA), is the center of attention.
The NBA’s astronomical paychecks have been represented at the Olympics. According to a study by US sports business publication Sportico, seven of the top 10 highest-earning athletes in the most recent year were NBA players. The other three are golfers. 파워볼실시간 The combined earnings of Team USA athletes last year were more than $600 million (about $831 million).
Men’s golfer Yonram (Spain) topped the list, earning $210 million. The second, third, and fifth spots went to a trio of NBA superstars: LeBron James, Steph Curry, and Kevin Durant of the United States. James earned $127 million (about $173 billion). In fourth place is Yanis Adetokunbo (Greece), the ace of the NBA’s Milwaukee Bucks.
Team USA, which includes aces from each of the NBA’s top teams, was the talk of the town before the games. It was reported that they rented an entire luxury hotel in Paris for the Games, spending about $15 million (about 20.8 billion won). This is nothing new, as the 2016 Rio Olympics, which Hagisa reported on from the field, saw the team fly in a luxury cruise ship, The Silver Cloud, to stay overnight.
Not only the United States, but each country has a strong NBA team. France, the host country of the Olympics, is no exception. Victor Wembanyama, a former French national team player who was once praised by NBA legend Tony Parker as a talent, is the core of the French team.
Wembanyama’s popularity is easy to see. On the LED (light-emitting diode) screens on the exterior wall of the Georges Pompidou Center in Paris, he alternates with Kylian Mbappe, France’s top soccer star. The fast-paced game of basketball is especially popular among young people, and it’s no different in France.
Wembanyama is fast for his size (224 centimeters) and is a great dribbler. This is why he”s nicknamed “the alien”. He made his NBA debut after being drafted first overall by the San Antonio Spurs, the same team that drafted national team great Jabari Parker, and won the Rookie of the Year title in the 2023-2024 season. Along with Rudy Gobert (Minnesota Timberwolves), he is one of the pillars of the French frontcourt.
Pierre Lotte, 20, spoke through a translator as we met in front of the Pompidou Center. “I enjoy playing basketball with my friends, I enjoy watching it,” he said. “After Wembanyama and now Zachary Lizachet, a French player has been selected first overall in the NBA Draft for two consecutive years. It feels good that France is strong. However, there are NBA players from other countries, so we can’t let our guard down.”