The Men's Basketball World Cup is here. The host Chinese men's basketball team will also usher in its first match. Their opponent will be the Côte d'Ivoire men's basketball team, which ranks bottom in the World Cup. This game is like a life and death battle for the Chinese men's basketball team, and they cannot afford to lose.

In history, the two sides have played against each other three times. In the 1982 World Championships in Colombia, the men's basketball team won the first meeting between the two sides 91-77. Four years later, at the World Championships in Spain, the men's basketball team defeated its opponent again 84 to 72. At the 2010 World Championships in Türkiye, Côte d'Ivoire sent warmth again. The Chinese men's basketball team defeated its opponent 83 to 73 and entered the top 16 with this victory.

Four players from this Cote d'Ivoire men's basketball team participated in the 2010 World Championships, and one of them is still the core of the team. He is the 32-year-old Diabate. As for the Chinese men's basketball team, only Arab League and Guo Ailun participated in the 2010 World Championships.

Although the opponent is only ranked 64th in the world and is the lowest ranked team in the top 32, the Chinese men's basketball team must also be careful about this opponent. Compared with the Côte d'Ivoire men's basketball team, the biggest disadvantage of the Chinese men's basketball team in this game is that it is under much greater psychological pressure than its opponents.

If the Chinese men's basketball team carries the burden of wanting to win and being afraid of losing, it will be in big trouble. Therefore, facing such an opponent, Li Nan's most important job is to relieve the pressure of the men's basketball boys, which tests Li Nan's ability to mediate the players' psychology.

How can the Chinese men's basketball team defeat them? The first point is to take advantage of the inside line. The average height of the Ivorian men's basketball team is only 1.98 meters. The Chinese men's basketball team, which has A Lian, Zhou Qi and Wang Zhelin, has obvious advantages under the basket.