Clash of the Titans

While this friendly clash between Serbia and France held no competitive weight, and with both teams gearing up for the second round of World Cup qualifiers in late August, the crowd at Belgrade Arena could hardly have asked for a better spectacle.

Sure, the atmosphere would have been more electric for a high-stakes competitive game, but when Belgrade hosts a duel between—with all due respect to Giannis Antetokounmpo and Joel Embiid—the two best centers on the planet, does it get any better? Especially when the Eagles managed to outperform the French, securing a 90-87 victory.

Nikola Jokić versus Victor Wembanyama. The crème de la crème of the world's strongest basketball league put on a show for the Belgrade Arena tonight.

On one side, Nikola Jokić, a man who has completely redefined the center position over the past decade, challenging conventional wisdom about what big men should do on the court. On the other, Victor Wembanyama, a player sparking another revolution in the paint. Jokić proved that centers can be playmakers, forcing many NBA teams to build around dominant bigs, just like Denver. Wembanyama, at 224 centimeters, is the first of his kind: a towering player who can handle the ball, dribble, attack off the bounce, and shoot from distance, all while using his immense wingspan to block nearly any shot.

Given that Jokić and Wembanyama have only faced each other once outside the NBA—in a warm-up game before the Paris Olympics—it's fair to say that Belgrade witnessed a piece of history tonight.

Although French coach Frédéric Fauthoux started the first quarter with a twin-towers lineup, featuring Rudy Gobert at center and Victor Wembanyama at power forward, Gobert quickly ran into foul trouble. This forced the popular "Wemby" back to his primary role.

And that's when the show truly began. The two engaged in a series of tough, physical duels in the paint. Wembanyama managed to block Jokić early on, but the world's best player quickly got his revenge, threading a pass right by his ear for an easy teammate layup. Wembanyama could only offer a slight, knowing smile at his own expense.

Unlike their seven previous NBA encounters, this matchup was decidedly less tense and more of an exhibition—as expected in a friendly. Jokić averages 37.9 points against Wembanyama in the NBA, while Wemby puts up 26.4. Despite the lower intensity, Jokić finished the game with 20 points, while Wembanyama had a more modest 10.

Even at half-speed, Jokić and Wemby brought a taste of the NBA to Belgrade. For anyone who has never experienced the thrill of an NBA game, it was a priceless experience.

VIDEO: Jokić records a triple-double against Bosnia and Herzegovina, then runs to embrace his children!