Asian Basketball Journal - April 11, 2014

Here in the Philippines there really is no site (or person) really dedicated to the Asian hoops scene, which is why this series exists. Through this series of Asian Basketball Journals, I hope to address just that void. I believe that Asian basketball is such a vibrant source of stories, and I think this should be shared with hoop nuts here in the Philippines and beyond.

Like what I did in the previous post, I won’t be going into a lot of detail anymore. I’ll use mostly images and videos and then just add captions to each one that will, hopefully, capture the essence of the latest developments in Asian hoops.

As always, the past few weeks saw many interesting things happen. In fact, a couple of Asian hoops leagues already finished their seasons, with two champions repeating. Aside from these, the Iranian Superleague’s own postseason kicked into high gear, while the Lebanese and Japanese leagues continue to reach the final stages of their respective elimination rounds. Also, a new head coach for the Japanese NT was announced.

(from left and then top to bottom): Moon Tae-Jong celebrates their KBL title, Tsai Wen_Cheng is named Finals MVP in the SBL, Yusuke Okada drives strong for Toyota, Hamed Haddadi unfurls a hook shot, and Elie Stephan of Sagesse pumps his fist after a big shot.

2014 Lebanese Basketball League (LBL): Sagesse, Amchit, and Al Riyadi remain strong!

Hussein Tawbeh of Hoops Club goes up strong against Homenetmen Beirut.
(image from Prosportlb)

Hayk Gyokchyan of Homenetmen Beirut tries to throw one down against Hoops Club.
(image from Prosportlb)

Georgi Tsintsadze of Champville tries to go around the defense of Sagesse's Rodrigue Akl.
(image from Prosportlb)

Elie Stephan is pumped after hitting one of his three triples against Champville. Sagesse won this one, 91-60.
(image from Prosportlb)

Fadi El-Khatib had 22 points and 7 assists as Amchit Club blew out Homenetmen Beirut last week, 133-91.
(image from Prosportlb)

2014 Iran Superleague: Petrochimi and Mahram earn big wins as the Playoffs begin!

Powerhouse teams Mahram-Tehran and Petrochimi Bandar Imam are set to meet in the semifinals even as Azad University awaits the victor between Foolad Mahan Esfahan and Zob Ahan Esfahan.
(image from iranbasketball.org)

Mohammad Hassanzadeh of Azad University sizes up the D of Petrochimi's Arsalan Kazemi. Petrochimi won this one, 82-62.
(image by Ashkan Mehriar)

Ivorian NT player Mohammed Kone of Sanaye shoots over Mahram's Hamed Haddadi. Mahram won this game, 91-63.
(image by Ashkan Mehriar)

Farid Aslani of Mahram tries to turn the corner against the Sanaye D.
(image by Ashkan Mehriar)

Former NBA player Dan Gadzuric of Petrochimi goes up strong against Azad University.
(image by Ashkan Mehriar)

Hamed Afagh of Petrochimi goes head-to-head against future NT star Mohammad Jamshidi of Azad.
(image by Ashkan Mehriar)

Iranian superstar Hamed Haddadi hoists one up against Sanaye's Mohammad Reza Daragi.
(image by Ashkan Mehriar)

2014 KBL: Ulsan Mobis Phoebus repeats as KBL Champions!

Davon Jefferson and the rest of the LG Sakers squandered a 2-1 series lead to fall in six games.
(image from BasketKorea.com)

The Ulsan Mobis Phoebus celebrate after winning in game five and taking a 3-2 lead to the sixth game
(image from BasketKorea.com)

Star playmaker Yang Dong-Geun of Ulsan struggled in his match-up with the younger Kim Si-Rae of Changwon, but he still helped his team cop the crown.
(image from BasketKorea.com)

Coach Yoo Jae-Hak of Ulsan is all smiles. He is expected to prep the NT intensely for the FIBA World Cup later this year.
(image from BasketKorea.com)

Moon Tae-Young (Greg Stevenson) was phenomenal in the Finals, averaging 22.2 points per game as Ulsan Mobis Phoebus bagged back-to-back titles.
(image from BasketKorea.com)

2014 Japan-NBL: Toshiba and Toyota continue to lead the way! Kenji Hasegawa named new coach of the Japanese NT!

Kenji Hasegawa of Aoyama Gakuin University is the new head coach of the Japan NT. He replaces Kimikazu Suzuki of the Aishin Seahorses after the NT's debacle in the 2013 FIBA Asia tourney.

Yusuke Okada came off the bench to torch the Link Tochigi Brex with 5 triples. Okada's Toyota Alvark won that game to stay within striking distance of the league-leading Toshiba Brave Thunders.
(image from Toyota Alvark)

Shogo Asayama scored 13 points as the Mitsubishi Diamon Dolphins upset the Aishin Seahorses, 77-76, this past week. The Dolphins remain at third in Group B.
(image from Mitsubishi Electric)

Cedric Bozeman of Toshiba goes up and scores as the Toshiba Brave Thunders survived the tough challenge from the Hitachi Sunrockers, 63-62.
(image from Toshiba)

Hiromasa Omiya of Kumamoto hit three treys as the Volters defeated the Hyogo Storks, 83-81. Kumamoto is dead last in the NBL with just 6 wins in 48 games.
(image from Volters)

2014 SBL: Pure Youth defeats Taiwan Mobile to win the SBL title!

Hung Ying-Che of Taiwan Mobile tries to slide past Quincy Davis of Pure Youth in Game 6. Taiwan Mobile lost in the Finals series, 1-4.
(image from Yahoo! Taiwan)

Luke Nevill of Taiwan Mobile slams one home in Game 6. They lost, 83-69. Nevill, however, was still named Import of the Year in the SBL.
(image from Yahoo! Taiwan)

Quincy Davis had 20 points and 17 rebounds to help clinch the title for Pure Youth. This is the club's third straight SBL crown.
(image from Yahoo! Taiwan)

Pure Youth players celebrate after they formalize their three-peat, which is only the second such feat in the SBL's history. The Yulon Luxgen Dinos weere champs from 2004-2006.
(image from Yahoo! Taiwan)

NT mainstay Tsai Wen-Cheng was adjudged Finals MVP after averaging close to 15 points in all of Pure Youth's wins in the best-of-7 series. He was also named to the league's First Team/Mythical Five.
(image from Yahoo! Taiwan)

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