‘Close fight’ in Asiad

Asian Basketball Confederation (ABC) secretary-general Dato Yeoh Choo Hock of Malaysia says the Philippines should make it to the semifinals of the Asian Games in Busan on Sept. 28 to Oct. 14 and predicts a "close fight" for the gold.

But Yeoh stops short of identifying the probable finalists.

In the last three Asian Games, the Philippine national basketball team has not finished lower than fourth. Robert Jaworski piloted the squad to a silver medal at the 1990 Asiad in Beijing. Norman Black led the nationals to fourth place at the 1994 Asiad in Hiroshima. And Tim Cone took the Centennials to third at the 1998 Asiad in Bangkok.

Yeoh, who took over as ABC secretary-general from Mauricio Martelino in 1998, points to defending Asiad champion China as the title favorite. Lebanon is another serious contender, he adds. China beat Lebanon, 97-63, in the ABC finals in Shanghai last July and both teams will represent Asia at the World Championships in Indianapolis on Aug. 29 to Sept. 8.

Yeoh says Chinese coach Wang Fei is back on the job after a six-month immersion program with the Dallas Mavericks in the National Basketball Association (NBA).

"In Shanghai, Yao Ming was unstoppable – he was China’s best player, even better than Wang Zhizhi who sometimes didn’t feel like playing," notes Yeoh. Yao Ming, a 7-6 center, is making his Asiad debut this year and was voted MVP of the last ABC tournament. Wang Zhizhi, a 7-1 forward, plays for the Mavericks and his tag as the firs Asian to play in the NBA has created ego-related attitude problems on the ABC level.

As for Lebanon, Yeoh says coach Johnny Neumann’s players are tall, athletic and quick. The Lebanese beat South Korea, 75-72, in the ABC semifinals to arrange the title duel with China. In the eliminations, South Korea trounced Lebanon, 97-71, so the Koreans also shouldn’t be taken lightly.

Yeoh says "it’s just a matter of time before the Philippines becomes a world power in basketball again." He blames politics for the downfall of Philippine basketball.

"There is light at the end of the tunnel," he says. "The Philippines was once a world power in basketball and has the capability to become a world power once more – if only the officials of Philippine basketball come together. The PBA, MBA, PBL, and BAP should act like one family. That’s the key. There’s no problem in getting good players for the national team – the base is automatic. The school system is strong. The coaches are knowledgeable. The secret is getting everyone to work as a team – it’s never healthy to work against each other."

Yeoh played an instrumental role in solving the nine-month leadership impasse in the Basketball Association of the Philippines (BAP) last year. The dispute led to the BAP’s suspension by the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) and the disqualification of the national team at the ABC Championships in Shanghai.

"As the ABC secretary-general, it was very sad to see the Philippines suspended by FIBA," says Yeoh. "It was nine months of torture of basketball-loving people for the Philippines to be banned because we know how much Filipinos love the game. I protested the FIBA suspension because it was done without consulting the ABC. It was a life and death situation but FIBA sent out a circular notifying the suspension without giving the ABC time to react. It was the saddest day of my life when the Philippines was suspended."

Yeoh says now that the suspension has been lifted, the entire basketball community can learn from the experience. "We should all wake up," he continues. "It was a good lesson for everybody. I’m happy to know that the BAP, through Tiny Literal and Graham Lim, is now working closely with the PBA for the Asian Games."

Yeoh says the practice of suiting up a naturalized player in international competitions is approved by FIBA and Malaysia would do it except the government has strict guidelines on qualifications for citizenship. The limit is one naturalized player a team. But if a player is naturalized before he turns 16, the limit does not apply, notes Yeoh.

In Singapore’s case, Yeoh says about 20 players from northern China were recently recruited to train for the national team. They’re all under 16 and standing over six feet tall. The recruits include six boys who average 6-8 in height. The rest are girls. Yeoh says he expects Singapore to become a title threat in future Southeast Asian Games.