Utah Jazz players playing the math in the Olympics

Men's international basketball. Photo: Markus Spiske

TOKYO, Japan. — The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a game of acquiring talent, no matter what country it derives. When the proverbial bell of an Olympic season rings, however, athletes return to their neutral corners from whence they came.

As such, the two rostered Utah Jazz NBA players, Joe Ingles and Rudy Gobert, playing in the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games are in the mix but in different jerseys.

Ingles represents Australia, Gobert represents France.

Thus far in tournament preliminary play, the two teams are on parallel trajectories.

• Australia bested Nigeria 84 – 67  while France bested Team USA 83 – 76.
• Next Australia lost to Belgium 70 – 85 and France lost to Japan 70 – 74.
• Then Australia won over Italy 86 – 83 as France won over the Czech Republic 97 – 77.