Mar 5, 2025; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; the first half at the Spectrum Center. Mandatory Credit: Sam Sharpe-Imagn Images Sam Sharpe-Imagn Images

Two Hornets named to their country's preliminary squad for the 2028 Olympic Games

Originally posted on Charlotte Hornets on SI
By Matt Alquiza | Last updated Jun 3, 2025 9:53 AM ET

The 2024 Summer Olympics were absolute nirvana for basketball fans. The United States' final two games, edge-of-your-seat victories against Serbia and France, ended up being the type of memorable contests we'll tell our grandkids about when bouncing them on our knees one day.

Two Charlotte Hornets players competed in the Games of the XXXIII Olympiad. Josh Green, fresh off of a trade from Dallas to Charlotte, suited up for the Australian National Team, and Vasilije Micic, now a member of the Phoenix Suns, donned the red, white, and blue Serbian garb alongside former NBA MVP Nikola Jokic.

The page has officially turned to the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, and teams around the world have begun the selection process for the next edition, and a pair of Hornets players are on their country's preliminary squad.

Moussa Diabate and Tidjane Salaün are on France's preliminary team

Both Tidjane Salaün and Moussa Diabate will have a chance to earn a place on France's team for the 2028 Olympic Games.

France has developed into a basketball powerhouse. The number one overall picks in the 2023 and 2024 NBA Drafts, Victor Wembanyama and Zaccharie Risacher, are both French natives. A number of other Frenchmen, Bilal Coulibaly, Nic Batum, Rudy Gobert, and Guerschon Yabusele, for example, played integral roles on teams across the league.

The amount of French basketball talent across the world right now is absurd, and the pair of Hornets have a long way to go if they want to rep their country's colors in 2028. Some much-needed development will help their quest (and the Hornets overall outlook), and it will be fascinating to track Salaun and Diabate's standing among their peers as the 2028 Olympics approach.