JAKARTA — The 2018 Asian Games men’s basketball tournament has drawn a lot of interest mainly because three NBA players are seeing action in the competition.
Heading the list of NBA players is Jordan Clarkson, the Cleveland Cavaliers guard who has joined the Philippine team. Also playing for their home nation are Zhou Qi and Ding Yanyuhang, from the Houston Rockets and the Dallas Mavericks, respectively.
Several of the more familiar names like Andray Blatche of the Philippines, Nick Fazekas and Rui Hachimura of Japan, Trey Johnson of Qatar and Quincy Davis of Chinese Taipei are not around but there there are still a number of players in the Asiad who might be familiar with Filipino basketball fans.
Sanchir Tungalag
The Mongolia mainstay played for Barangay Ginebra when the PBA allowed Asian imports to play in the 2015 Governors’ Cup. He also played for the Mongolian national team in the 2014 Asian Games.
Mohammad Jamshidi
The Iranian cager also played in the PBA for Meralco in the 2015 Governors’ Cup as its Asian import. Jamshidi was one of the key players for Iran in their title run in the 2013 Fiba Asia Championship.
Ricardo Ratliffe
Ratliffe is playing for Korea in these Games. Ratliffe played for the Star Hotshots in 2016 and 2017, then had a stint in Korea and went on to become its naturalized player. Ratliffe is the leading scorer for Korea in the Fiba Basketball World Cup Asian qualifiers.
Junghyun Lee
Outside Ratliffe, Lee is another scoring threat for Korea particularly from the three-point territory. He has a total of 19 threes in the Fiba Basketball World Cup Asian qualifiers and Lee is expected to bring that same kind of outside shooting to the Korean squad which brought their top flight team in the competition.
Hamed Haddadi
A former NBA player with the Memphis Grizzlies and the Phoenix Suns, Haddadi has been a mainstay in Asian basketball, having led Iran to the 2013 Fiba Asia Championship and has won the MVP of the same tournament four times. He has also played in the Chinese and Iranian leagues after his NBA stint.
Wang Zhelin
Outside Zhou and Ding, Wang is one of the top Chinese players in the Asian Games. The 24-year-old 7-footer is being labeled as one of the future stars of Chinese basketball. He was drafted in the second round by the Memphis Grizzlies in 2016.
Abudushalamu Abudurexiti
The Chinese player with Uyghurs ethnicity is making waves in Chinese basketball, leading the team in scoring in the Fiba Basketball World Cup Asia qualifiers. Abudushalamu was once considered by the Golden State Warriors.
Mohammadsamad Nikkhabahrami
Like Haddadi, Bahrami has also been a regular for Iran in international play including the 2013 Fiba Asia Championship where the Philippines was the host.
Chen Yingchun
Without Davis, Chinese Taipei is expected to lean on Chen, its second leading scorer in the Fiba Basketball World Cup with a 13.0 average.
Jamarr Johnson
Indonesia may not be a powerhouse in Asian basketball but the host are making their return to the sport after 56 years. Leading the way for Indonesia is their naturalized player Jamarr Johnson, who also played in the 2016 Seaba Championship.
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