Asian Basketball Journal - April 20, 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 previous posts, I won’t be going into a lot of detail. 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 week or so saw many interesting things happen. Even with the conclusion of the Chinese, Korean, and Taiwanese leagues, a lot of exciting things still transpired. For instance, the semifinal cast of the Iranian Superleague is finally set, the Playoffs of the Qatar Basketball League's Emir Cup has begun, and the Koreans are looking for a new naturalized player in preparation for the World Cup and Asian Games! There really never is any stop to the action in Asian basketball!

Even with some continental league's already finished, there was no
shortage of action in the Asian hoops scene.

2014 Lebanese Basketball League (LBL): Amchit wins big over Byblos as Al Riyadi and Sagesse power through!

Egyptian veteran Ahmad Ismail continues to drop big games for league-leading Al Riyadi.
(image from ProSportLb)

Loren Woods missed Riyadi's last game, but he is still definitely one of the main guys for
the seven-time champs.
(image from ProSportLb)

Rodrigue Akl remains one of the best playmakers in the league with an
average of 7.8 assists per game, which is good for second overall.
(image from ProSportLb)

Former national team member Sabah Khoury and his Champville club
are gearing up to be one of the bottom two seeds in the LBL Playoffs.
(image from ProSportLb)

2014 Iran Superleague: Zob Ahan completes semis cast with Game 3 win over Foolad Mahan!

Amir Abbas Mohabbat stepped up with 15 points to help Zob Ahan
dominate Foolad Mahan and advance to the semifinals.
(image by Ashkan Mehriar/IranBasketball.org)

7'4 Jaber Rouzbahani and the rest of Foolad Mahan stumbled
out of the Playoff race.
(image by Ashkan Mehriar/IranBasketball.org)

7'7 Serbian giant Slavko Vranes tries to seal 7'2 Hamed Haddadi in
one of their elims games. They might meet again if both
Zob Ahan and Mahram advance to the Finals.
(image by Ashkan Mehriar/IranBasketball.org)

2014 Advani Memorial Basketball Tournament (India): ONGC defends title!

Bannered by 7'1 national team slotman Amrit Pal Singh (the one with the turban), ONGC Uttarakhand defeated Indian Air Force, 76-61, in the Finals of
 the 2014 Advani Memorial Basketball Tournament.
(image from Hoopistani/Ekalavyas)

2014 Qatar Basketball League (QBL): Al Gharafa and Al Rayyan continue strong in the playoffs!

Dwayne Jones of El Jaish goes up strong against traditional powerhouse Al Rayyan.
(image from Al Arab)

Jamareo Davidson and the rest of Al Rayyan blew out El Jaish, 93-73,
to hand them their first defeat of the season.
(image from Al Arab)

National team mainstay Khalid Suliman Abdi struggled as
Al Sadd lost to Al Gharafa, 70-62.
(image from Al Arab)

Manny Adako scored 17 markers to help Al Gharafa trounce Al Sadd.
(image from Al Arab)

2014 Kazakhstan D1: BC Astana dominates in Finals series!

Anatoly Kolesnikov and the rest of BC Astana grab
a 2-0 lead in the Finals of Kazakh's Division 1.
(image from the VTB-League)

Jerry Johnson is in the running for Most Valuable Player in the 2014 season of the VTB United League.
(image from the VTB-League)

2014 South Korean National Team: Four new naturalization candidates emerge!

Candidate #1 is 6'8 Rod Benson of repeat champions Ulsan Mobis Phoebus.
(image from StarN)

6'9 Davon Jefferson of runners-up Changwon LG Sakers
is the second naturalization candidate.
(image from JumpBall.co.kr)

Candidates #3 and #4 are 6'11 Courtney Sims and 6'7 Aaron Haynes,
both of whom play for the Seoul SK Knights.
(image from JumpBall.co.kr)

2014 Japan-NBL: Leaders win big in the homestretch!

The Japan-NBL Playoffs will soon begin!

JR Sakuragi and the Aishin Seahorses continue to lead the Western Division
with a 40-12 record.
(image from Aisin Seiki)

Noriaki Dohara and the Hyogo Storks were blown out
big time by the Wakayama Trians, 101-66.
(image from the Hyogo Storks)

Takatoshi Furukawa  pulls up for a jumper as Link Tochigi Brex
beat Levanga Hokkaido, 97-74, and stay at third place in the East.
(image from Link Sports Entertainment)

Despite nearing 44 years of age, Japanese living legend Takehiko Orimo continues
 to be a productive player for Levanga Hokkaido.
(image from Levanga Hokkaido)

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