Par Pierre-Andréa Fraile | Journaliste sportif
Four years after Alex Toupane’s coronation, another Frenchman could become NBA champion, namely Ousmane Dieng. A rotation player with the Thunder, Dieng’s name has been making the rounds on social networks in the run-up to the Finals.
It had already been a few hours since the NBA Finals schedule was made official by the league. However, only one of the two teams scheduled to take part was known until this Saturday. We had to wait until the end of the Eastern Conference Finals, and the Pacers’ Game 6 victory over the Knicks, to find out the line-up for this exciting series between Indiana and Oklahoma City.
Ousmane Dieng, the X factor of the Finals? The web has fun
Based on the trends offered by the bookmakers, the Thunder will emerge as the big favorite in these Finals. It has to be said that, in addition to an impressive regular season, the franchise relies on a roster depth that defies all competition. At the heart of this well-stocked roster is… Ousmane Dieng, as an Internet user humorously reminded us in recent hours on X :
“the okc thunder are a really deep team. we gotta be ready for ousmane dieng” pic.twitter.com/g44Beh8oPx
— alex (@steven_lebron) June 1, 2025
In this post, @steven_lebron poked fun at a peculiar habit of Indiana coach Rick Carlisle. Before each playoff series, he usually lists his opponents’ strengths, including the most obscure and little-known ones. And it has to be said that Dieng, who has so far played just 27 minutes in the playoffs, is not one of his team’s key players.
A regular feature on social networks, the joke was a big hit, as evidenced by the reactions it generated:
@tonysthoughts88: This joke will never get old
@LeMortere: I can 100% guarantee he’ll come out with something like this about Aaron Wiggins and Isaiah Joe
@SalmonTunas: He’ll do it with Kenrich Williams too for sure 😭
@317_Indy: “I think Nikola Topic can really give them great minutes, even with a torn ACL.”
In any case, let’s hope Dieng emerges victorious from this confrontation and is crowned NBA champion, if possible with a little extra playing time in the meantime.