As one half of the first French duo to be top-20 picks in the NBA Draft, along with No. 1 selection Victor Wembanyama, Bilal Coulibaly says he was often asked throughout the draft process last summer about basketball in his country. In addition to Coulibaly and Wembanyama, two others from France were also drafted (Rayan Rupert and Sidy Cissoko) plus another (Malcolm Cazalon) has debuted this season after going undrafted. Five rookies from France is a record for the country, which already boasts the most NBA players in the league’s history outside of North America. The sport has long since arrived in France, but this particular wave seems to represent a big step forward. “I said ‘Next year, you’ll see.’ There will be more,” Coulibaly told Monumental Sports Network. “I’m not shocked about it. I knew it was coming.”