All Roads Lead to Manila: The TOP FIVE FIBA Asia Point Guards Outside of the Philippines

This has been a long delayed post, simply because the past couple of weeks have been… interesting, to say the least. In the previous post in this series, we looked at the TOP FIVE FIBA Asia Shooting Guards. These are the players usually tasked to take the open trey (and drain it) and generally help spread the floor. Sometimes, these SGs also function as supplementary playmakers.

In this post, however, we will focus our attention on the primary playmakers – the best ones that is – in our corner of this big blue planet. We will look at a position that pretty much dictates the tempo of a game – a position on which the fortunes of a team usually hinge.

Yang Dong-Geun is one of the most feared
point guards in the continent.
(image from the KBL)

In this, the last of a five-part series, I present to you the TOP FIVE FIBA Asia Point Guards OUTSIDE OF THE PHILIPPINES:

All Roads Lead to Manila – The TOP FIVE FIBA Asia Shooting Guards Outside of the Philippines

In the previous post in this series, we looked at the TOP FIVE FIBA Asia Small Forwards. These are the wing players who usually carry the bulk of the offense of any given team. More often than not, these are players who can do practically everything – penetrating, sniping, and playmaking.

In this post, Part 4 in our series, we will look at a position that pretty much defines the international game – the shooting guard. Shooting guards are usually the players with the deadliest touch from long range. Historically, some of the best Asian hoopsters played this position – Hu Weidong of China, Lee Sang-Min of Korea, Cheng Chih-Lung of Taiwan, and, of course, our very own Allan Caidic. Any team that harbors hopes of gaining success in international basketball must have good shooters – shooters who don’t need two or three minutes to “heat up”, but, rather, shooters who can light it up at the drop of a hat.

Naturalized Jordanian Rasheim Wright is one of the
toughest match-ups in all of Asia.
(image from Yahoo.com)

Kids, here are at the TOP FIVE FIBA Asia Shooting Guards OUTSIDE OF THE PHILIPPINES:

The Top 5 FIBA Asia Shooting Guards.
(composite image by Enzo Flojo)

All Roads Lead to Manila – The TOP FIVE FIBA Asia Small Forwards Outside of the Philippines

In the first two posts in this series, we looked at the TOP FIVE FIBA Asia Centers and Power Forwards. These are the big men who are expected to man the paint of their respective teams, grab a lion’s share of the rebounds, and serve as the last lines of defense against cutters and slashers.

In this post, we will look at perhaps the most crowded position in FIBA Asia, at least in terms of sheer talent. This was, quite honestly, one of the toughest positions about which to write, since, again, there are so many big names and great players who play small forward. This is mainly because, prototypically, a small forward is one of the heavy-hitters or scorers of a basketball team. Some of the most decorated players in basketball lore played the 3 position, like Scottie Pippen, Larry Bird, and, in the more contemporary context, LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony.  The reason for this, I surmise, is that SFs, or swingmen as they are wont to be labeled, usually have a good combination of size, quickness, and shooting – all of which are extremely important in basketball.

In Part 3 of our series, we will look at the TOP FIVE FIBA Asia Small Forwards. 

Fadi El-Khatib and Samad Nikkhah Bahrami are sure
to renew their rivalry in the 2013 FIBA Asia tourney.
(image from FIBAAsia.net)

Now, there are several awesome talents I deliberately chose to leave out of this list for a slew of reasons. These players are:

Zaid Abbas (Jordan) – He expressed his retirement from international basketball because his club team (Guangdong) and the Jordan Basketball Association just couldn’t agree on terms that would allow him to play again for the Jordan NT.

Tanguy Ngombo (Qatar) – Ngombo is certainly an intriguing FIBA Asia talent, but his eligibility issues cast doubt on whether he’ll even play in August. Take note that he was already deemed ineligible in Wuhan two years ago, and he didn’t even play for Qatar in last year’s FIBA Asia Cup. I’m not counting on him showing up in Manila.

Yaseen Musa (Qatar) – Musa is really a stretch forward (combo SF & PF), and he’s surely one of the best the region has ever seen, but he’s getting really old really fast. I believe the Qataris will probably choose to focus on younger talent when the Manila tourney commences.

Okay, now that those disclaimers have been expressed, here are my TOP FIVE FIBA Asia Small Forwards:

All Roads Lead to Manila – The TOP FIVE FIBA Asia Power Forwards Outside of the Philippines

In the previous post in this series, we looked at the TOP FIVE FIBA Asia Centers. These are the beanpoles who are expected to anchor the interior offenses of their respective teams and serve as the last line of defense in case the perimeter defense cracks.

In this issue, we’ll look at maybe the most peculiar position in basketball – the power forward position. I’ve always felt that his position was a little too overstated. I mean, just look at its name – POWER FORWARD. The first time I heard that term was way back in fourth grade when one of my classmates announced that he was officially the class basketball team’s POWER FORWARD. What the hell did that mean – that he could never step back over the timeline on defense? And what kind of power did he actually have? Could he leap from one free throw line to the other in a single bound?

In reality, however, playing PF might seem absolutely confusing, if not utterly schizophrenic. A PF, in the traditional sense, is smaller than the center, but a little bigger than any of the wingmen. He is not really supposed to man the middle, but he should be inside. Typically, he is not the first option in the low block, but he would do well NOT to shoot from way out, too. In short, many times, a PF is neither here nor there. It’s a position built for people who like impersonating headless chickens whose main goal in life is to just jump and get repossessions. Dennis Rodman, Reggie Evans, Malik Rose – ring any bells?

Of course, there have been a plethora of basketball greats who were PFs, like Karl Malone, Charles Barkley, Kevin McHale, Kevin Garnett, and Othella Harrington (What? He isn’t on your list? You’re kidding, right?). Still, it’s perhaps one of the toughest positions to fill simply because a PF, again, is expected to possess the skills of both a center and a small forward without being “too much” of either position. This is, I guess, why guys like Keith Van Horn and Tim Thomas never really could find their “identity,” because PFs, by nature, have nebulous roles.

It is no surprise, then, that these muddled responsibilities and varying skill sets are present in Asian PFs. It is with this context that, here in Part 2 of our series, we look at the TOP FIVE FIBA Asia Power Forwards, and then make some recommendations for which locals could be viable match-ups against these marquee Asian cagers. Please take note that some of these 4s actually play either the small forward or center spot at times for their respective teams. Again, this should not really come as a surprise.

Oh Se-Keun, a Rookie-of-the-Year/Finals MVP in the
KBL last season, is one of the top PFs in Asia.
(image from Basketball-TPE.org)

All Roads Lead to Manila – The TOP FIVE FIBA Asia Centers Outside of the Philippines

Okay, with Gilas Pilipinas's dominant run in the 2013 Super Kung Sheung Cup and the impending Manila hosting of the 2013 FIBA Asia Men's Championships, every Pinoy who's even remotely hooked on basketball is suddenly overwhelmed with anticipation.

To add even more excitement, not to mention a renewed sense of patriotic unity, the PBA, after its recent history of being a little stingy with regard to lending players to the national cause, has signified its full and absolute cooperation, even going as far as altering its calendar.

Needless to say, all Pinoys seem to be onboard, ready, and willing to do all it takes in helping the Gilas Pilipinas squad do well and accomplish its FIBA World Cup qualification mission in August this year.

The first concrete step, of course, is to form a national pool of players from which coach Chot Reyes can pick his poison for the final FIBA Asia-bound roster. There are many good players he can choose, of course, whether they come from the amateur or pro ranks. For the first time ever, too, we have probably the biggest crop of TALL players who can complement our awesome naturalized big man, Marcus Douthit. Prospects really do seem bright for Philippine basketball, but, wait, let's not get ahead of ourselves (as we are wont to do).

Before we can even pick the members of the national pool, we must first consider, or offer to consider, the kind of opposition we will face in the FIBA Asia joust. Yes, yes, we all know the general archetypes of international basketball -- big men can shoot the three, teams tend to play zone defense, guards are as tall as our local forwards, yada, yada, yada.

What I want to look at, however, are the specific players Gilas Pilipinas will have to deal with. It's one thing to simply say our foes will be taller and stronger, and it's a completely different thing to know their specific strengths, weaknesses, and tendencies. This is where this post comes in.

We'll look at the TOP FIVE FIBA Asia players per position, and then make some recommendations for which locals could be viable match-ups against these marquee Asian cagers.

We'll see more of this Iranian giant come August!
Bring it on, Hamed!
(image from Interaksyon.com)

In Part 1, we will look at the Top FIVE FIBA Asia Centers:

-       Please take note that several of these guys didn’t play in the 2011 FIBA Asia Championships, so their names might not really be familiar.

-       Also, I don’t want to approach this series of posts with a bloated sense of confidence in our own local players, so please forgive me if I build up our foreign foes a little too much.