25th FIBA Asia Championship 2009 [Aug 6-16 China]

[nardy]

Please be informed that the following teams would be competing at the FIBA-Asia Championship in Tianjin, China this August 6-16, 2009:

Host: China
Qualifyers from the FIBA-Asia Stankovic Cup: (1) Jordan, (2) Kazakhstan, (3) Kuwait, (4) Qatar and (5) India.
Qualifyers from the Gulf Cup: (1) United Arab Emirates and (2) Bahrain
Qualifyers from WABA: (1) Iran and (2) Lebanon.
Qualifyers from SEABA: (1) Philippines and (2) Indonesia.
Qualifyers from EAST ASIA: (1) South Korea and (2) Japan.
Qualifyers from MIDDLE ASIA: (1) Uzbekistan and (2) Sri Lanka

The draw will be held on June 17 at Tianjin, China for the Preliminary Groupings. The top four finishers of the 2007 FIBA-Asia Championship in Tokushima, Japan are seeded in order of their finish and would be on one group each. China as the hosts has the right to choose which group it will be under. Iran, Lebanon, Korea and Kazakhstan were the top four finishers in the biennial meet two years ago.

[TrueBluePinoy]

The chances of getting into a group death is lower compared to that of last edition.

[Zhang]

It seems that FIBA is disagree with the Fiba-asia's arrangement that the contenders of Asia Stankovic Cup automatically get the slot in this year's Fiba asia championship.Some of NTs which played in last year's Stankovic cup will not have the qualification to compete in Tianjin.
There is a report in Taiwan today that Chinese Taipei would be able to step into this year's Fiba aisa championship and the president of CTBA would show more details about that tomorrow.


I hope it's not a rumor.

[rtk04]

can we watch the draw live on the internet???

[tamagurl87]

the draw will be tomorrow...
i hope that boss Nardy can give us updates on the draw..

ill keep my fingers cross that the RP team will not be group together with china..
not just yet..
i wish to see the RP team vs china(if in gods grace there will be) in qfinals of semis(i wish)

[khaledlebanon]

Group A : Korea - Japan - UAE - SriLanka
Group B : Iran - Philippines - Kuwait - Indonesia
Group C : Kazakistan - Jordan - China - India
Group D : Lebanon - Qatar - Bahrain - Uzbekistan

[abdag77]

i thinklebanon win ABC 2009 if the leb NT represented by:
pos 1:ali mahmoud 183 cm 26 years- rony fahed 183cm 28 years- omar krayem 186 cm 23 years
pos 2+3: fadi elkhatib 197 cm 30 years-brayen bshara 204cm 31 yrs-antawin barbour 196 cm 26 yrs -jean abd nour 198cm 26 yrs.
pos 4+5 : matt freije 208cm 27 yrs- daniel faris 206 cm 22 yrs -ali kanaan 206 cm 22 yrs-jakson vromann 208 cm 28 yrs- bassel bawji 203 cm 20 yrs.

[luzvimindo]

ei mr. khaled, is that true?

[ThreeStars&aSun]

2009 FIBA Asia Championships for Men [China : August 6 - 16]

FIBA
rank ↓ Team ↓ Qualified ↓
10 China Host
23 Iran Qualification WABA
24 Lebanon Qualification WABA
26 Korea Qualification East Asia
27 Qatar Asia Stankovic Cup 4th place
33 Japan Qualification East Asia
41 Kazakhstan Asia Stankovic Cup runner-up
42 Jordan Asia Stankovic Cup champion
46 India Asia Stankovic Cup 5th place
52 Kuwait Asia Stankovic Cup 3rd place
54 Uzbekistan Qualification Middle Asia
63 Philippines Qualification SEABA
64 Indonesia Qualification SEABA
64 UAE Qualification Gulf
75* Bahrain Qualification Gulf
75* Sri Lanka Qualification Middle Asia

*unranked

[ThreeStars&aSun]

FIBA-Asia draw in Tianjin today
Wednesday, June 17, 2009 3:56:00 AM

Whether Lady Luck will be with the Philippines in the FIBA-Asia draw or not is a mystery until the groups are finalized after a lottery at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Tianjin, China, this afternoon.

SBP executive director Noli Eala, Powerade Team Pilipinas manager J. B. Baylon of Coca-Cola and interpreter Andrew Teh left on a PAL flight yesterday morning to represent the country at the draw. PBA commissioner Sonny Barrios was also invited to attend.

Before departing, Eala said jokingly he hopes the Philippines will land in the Group of Life after drawing the Group of Death at the FIBA-Asia Championships in Tokushima two years ago.

Iran, Lebanon, Korea and Kazakhstan are seeded to head each of the four brackets in the tournament based on the Tokushima results from No. 1 to No. 4. China is allowed to choose its bracket as the host country's privilege and will select to start the third round or after two teams are listed in each group. The rest of the slots will be filled by lottery.

There are 16 countries participating in the competition from the five FIBA-Asia zones of East Asia, Southeast Asia, West Asia, the Gulf and Middle Asia. The top three finishers will earn tickets to represent Asia at the World Championships in Turkey next year.

In Tokushima, the Philippines was the second to the last to be drawn and went to Group A with eventual champion Iran, defending titlist China and Jordan. Indonesia was the last to be picked and went to Group C with Qatar, India and Kazakhstan.

Aside from host China as automatic qualifier, the other teams playing in the Aug. 6-16 FIBA-Asia conclave are the five teams that made it via the Stankovic Cup -- Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Qatar and India, two teams from the Gulf -- United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, two teams from West Asia -- Iran and Lebanon, two teams from Southeast Asia -- the Philippines and Indonesia, two teams from East Asia -- Korea and Japan, and two teams from Middle Asia -- Uzbekistan and Sri Lanka.

Chinese-Taipei failed to qualify out of East Asia and will not play in the biennial tournament for the first time in 24 years. However, FIBA-Asia secretary-general Dato Yeoh Choo Hock was recently quoted as saying he will try to include Chinese-Taipei in the cast by either adding one more team to the draw or taking over from a qualifier. India is reportedly considering to withdraw. Chinese-Taipei finished sixth in Tokushima.

The Philippines took ninth place in the last FIBA-Asia tournament where China, playing a developmental team, wound up 10th. Iran won the title. Coach Chot Reyes' squad was in the so-called "Group of Death." The Philippines beat China, 79-74, but lost to Iran, 75-69, and Jordan, 84-76, and eventually placed ninth despite winning its last four games over Syria, 107-100, in overtime, India, 104-89, Kuwait, 89-58, and China in a rematch, 78-76. Iran trounced Lebanon, 74-69, in the finals while Korea tripped Kazakhstan, 80-76, for third place.

Serbian coach Rajko Toroman, who piloted Iran to the FIBA-Asia title that led to a ticket to the Beijing Olympics, is now with the Smart-Gilas national team program.

Eala said he will also check with China Basketball Association (CBA) officials in Tianjin if the Philippines could still play in the Stankovic Cup in Kunshan, near Shanghai, on Aug. 28-31.

Eala said the plan is to field a combined PBA-Smart-Gilas team to the Stankovic Cup with a PBA wish list of Jay-R Reyes, Jason Castro, MacMac Cardona, J. C. Intal, Larry Fonacier, Carlo Sharma and Samigue Eman. Barrios, however, said if the Stankovic Cup is a go, he will need approval from the PBA Board of Governors to allow pros to join the selection.

PBL chairman and Oracle team owner Mikee Romero welcomed news of the possible combination. "That's great news -- Smart-Gilas and PBA players in one team," said Romero. The Philippine Star

[ThreeStars&aSun]

Tough Fiba-Asia field looms for RP 5
Tuesday, June 16, 2009 3:51:00 AM

Powerade-Team Pilipinas will be in for a big surprise at the 2010 Fiba-Asia Championship in Tianjin, China this August.

Internet scouting reports have it that host China would parade at least three NBA players while Iran, the reigning Fiba-Asia champion, has been touring Germany and other European countries to boost its chances of securing a slot in the 2011 Fiba World Championships in Turkey.

Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP) executive director Noli Eala will fly to Tianjin Tuesday for the draw that will determine the groupings of the 16 countries that qualified to the Fiba Asia championship in August 6-16.

China, which will miss Yao Ming due to a hairline fracture on his left foot the Houston Rockets center sustained during the recent NBA playoffs, announced that Wang Zhi Zhi, Yi Jianlian and Sun Yue, the first Chinese to capture an NBA crown as part of the 2009 Los Angeles Lakers, would suit up.

These NBA players will be complemented by a bunch of promising seven-footers such as Wang Zheng, Sun Zhe, Zhang Dayu, Su Wei and Li Muhao.

"By just looking at their lineups, China and Iran are expected to get the first two slots for the world championships next year," said Eala. "Now, the last slot will be a toss-up among the rest of the competing countries, including us."

Other countries, meanwhile, have been beefing up their respective rosters to get a shot at the world championships.

Lebanon recently acquired former New Orleans stringer Jackson Vromann through naturalization and kept its menacing lineup of Fadi El-Khatib, Omar Krayem, Ali Kanaan, Ali Mahmoud and Sean Talibi intact.

Vromann played for Iran during the Fiba-Asia Champions Cup and torched the Smart Gilas Pilipinas National Team with 42 points.

Kazakhstan, another perennial contender, has brought in Anton Panomarev, a heavily built seven-footer expected to land in the first-round of the 2009 NBA Draft next week.

South Korea has summoned back its top offensive player, Hur Jae, who powered the Koreans to a stunning win over China in the recent East Asia qualifier.

Lebanon has offered to play against Powerade-Team Pilipinas in a tuneup game on July 27 but coach Yeng Guiao reportedly declined.

Other countries that qualified are Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, India, United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Indonesia, Japan, Uzbekistan and Sri Lanka.

Though the top four finishers in the 2007 edition -- Lebanon, Iran, Kazakhstan and Korea -- were already seeded into four different groups, Eala said whichever group the Philippines land would be tough. June Navarro - INQUIRER.net

[ThreeStars&aSun]

Middle East squads worry RP five coach most
Tuesday, June 16, 2009 3:52:00 AM |

Gone are the days when countries from our region fear the Mighty Chinese in the Asian Championship.

This time, they are avoiding the teams from the Middle East.

Iran, the reigning champion of the FIBA Asia Men's Basketball Championship and runner-up Lebanon are two teams which coach Yeng Guiao and his Powerade-Pilipinas men's basketball team want to avoid.

"I believe the country will have a better chance should it be bracketed either with Kazakhstan or South Korea. I think we can match up with these two countries (better) than the two rivals from the Middle East," said Guiao.

Guiao will be coaching the Philippine team for the first time in his career. He was assistant coach to Derick Pumaren during the 1989 Asian Basketball Confederation meet.

But the multi-titled PBA mentor believes that the luck of the draw will play a crucial role in the country's bid to make it to the World Basketball Championship in Turkey.

"Luck plays an important role because from there, we can set our plan. It will also give us some measure of confidence if we're bracketed against teams we have a better chance of beating," Guiao said.

The Filipinos are hoping Lady Luck smiles when the draw for the FIBA Asia meet is held this Wednesday.

Two years ago, the Pinoys were bracketed in a virtual "group of death" alongside eventual champion Iran, the mighty Chinese squad and the up-and-coming Jordan quintet.

Noli Eala, executive director of the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas, will represent the Philippines in the draw.

"Very critical will be the draw not in our group but the draw for the other groups. We need to place well in the elimination round en route to the quarterfinals in order to avoid dangerous cross over opponents in the succeeding rounds," said Eala.

"I like our chances and I am very hopeful we will make the semis," he added.

Eala will leave Tuesday for Tianjin, accompanied by the national squad's team manager JB Baylon and Guiao's deputies, Gee Abanilla and Kenneth Duremdes.

Abanilla and Duremdes were sent so that after knowing the result of the draw, they can immediately commence their scouting chores on the opposition.

Former national team coach Tim Cone is also hoping the Philippines won't suffer the same fate as Chot Reyes' RP squad two years ago in the same tournament.

"This will only be the second time we will participate in the FIBA Asia, but I hope Yeng won't encounter the same fate as Chot did," said Cone, who steered the Centennial squad to a third-place finish in the Asian Games in 1998.

"The seeding in the Asian Games is quite different from the FIBA Asia as the seeding was pre-determined by the results of your previous stint," he added. GMANews.TV

[ThreeStars&aSun]

Beijing Pinoys look forward to RP stintwill
Wednesday, June 17, 2009 3:55:00 AM |

BEIJING -- The 2009 FIBA Asian Basketball Championship, a tournament where the PBA-backed Philippine team is going to play in August, has been creating a buzz among Filipinos here.

Noel Novicio, a former sportswriter who is now Second Secretary and Consul of the Philippine Embassy, said they are now moving around to form a cheering squad and give the Yeng Guiao-mentored RP squad the extra boost.

Most Filipino migrant workers, according to Novicio, are looking forward to see PBA stars up close having away from the Philippines for quite a long time.

The tournament will be held in Tianjin - about one hour and 30 minutes drive from this capital city - from Aug. 6 to 16.

"But if we use the express train then we will be there in just 30 minutes, so I'm sure most of the Filipinos will support the RP team," added Novicio.

Tianjin is the sixth largest city in terms of urban population here and one of the great sources of pride of China having produced several top-notch athletes.

Fortunately, Tianjin is part of the three-city tour of the RP sports officials, led by Philippine Sports Commission chairman Harry Angping.

After Tianjin, the RP delegation will fly to Guanzhou and visit some of the venues of next year's Asian Games which the city will be hosting. Rey C. Lachica - Manila Bulletin

[TrueBluePinoy]

ei mr. khaled, is that true?

No. Iran, Lebanon, Korea, and Kazakhstan are seeded to Groups A, B, C, and D respectively.

A- Iran
B- Lebanon
C- Korea
D- Kazakhstan

And Bahrain has withdrawn from the tournament. Chinese Taipei will occupy the vacated slot.

[eliooo93]

No. Iran, Lebanon, Korea, and Kazakhstan are seeded to Groups A, B, C, and D respectively.

A- Iran
B- Lebanon
C- Korea
D- Kazakhstan

At what time will the results be announced?