Report: Bank of Taiwan overhauls its roster

Bank of Taiwan roster has undergone a complete overhaul which sees release of three veterans, a number of transfers and the signing of eight newcomers, local media reported.

The massive reform is no surprise, considering BOT managed to win only 15 games during the past three seasons and finished dead last among seven SBL teams in each of those years.

Gone are Lin Chun-feng, an inconsistent and temperamental forward who was at one point BOT's best scorer, point guard Chien Ming-fu, who has been the heart and soul in BOT's surprising 2005-06 playoff run in which it pushed the eventual champion Yulon to the brink of elimination, and 200cm center Chou Ben-tang.

Another 200cm center Cheng En-chieh will no longer be playing basketball for BOT. Instead, he will work as a banking staff. Now that's weird!

Guard Lin Chih-lung is expected to sign with Kinmen Kaoliang Liquor (KKL) while eight players -- Lin Kwan-lun, Liu Jui-sheng, Yang Cheng-lun, Sun Hwan-po, Yang Cheng-jung, Hsu Kai-chieh, Hsu Shih-ching and Wu Jun-hsiung -- will be brought in.

Hsu Kai-chieh played for Taiwan Mobile last season. Liu Jui-sheng transferred from Yulon while Hsu Shih-ching played for Pure Youth last season. Lin Kwan-lun played for KKL last year.

Well, BOT will basically be a brand new team after the big change. Will it be a better team? Don't bet on it because it's still coached by someone named Lai Liang-chung. And because BOT management has been doing nothing to promote the team. Actually it desperately wants to get rid of the team which costs it over NT 10 million per year.

Lin Chih-chieh turns down Shanghai, signs with Zhejiang

Taiwan Beer and Taiwan NT forward Lin Chih-chieh announces in a press conference Monday that he has signed with Zhejiang Lions despite a rumored more lucrative offer from Shanghai Sharks.

Details of the contract is not disclosed but it's believed to be a one-year deal that pays Lin more than $15,000 monthly.

The 27-year-old forward said that he chose Zhejiang, the 7th-place team in China's CBA last season, over Shanghai because he likes Zhejiang's players, competition level and experience.

The contract includes a proviso that demands an immediate release of Lin if he's invited by Taiwan NT for international competitions, Taiwan Beer head coach Yen Chia-hua said.

(Photo: CNA)

Lin completes tryouts in China

Taiwan Beer forward Lin Chih-chieh is back to Taiwan and will make a signing decision soon after tryouts with a pair of Chinese CBA teams.

Lin, who will be possibly the most high-profile Taiwanese player to play in China in years, participated in special tryouts with Shanghai Dongfang Sharks and Zhejiang Guangsha Lions in a four-day trip to China.

Saying that he was happy with his performance in the tryouts and very excited about the opportunity to play in China, Lin admitted that he was a little bit tired.

He hasn't made the final decision but said he prefers Zhejiang at the moment.

"The competition level is obviously different. Players are taller and it seems to me that more physical contacts are allowed here. There is more pounding, " he talked about Chinese style of play.

Taiwanese media reported that Shanghai team management loved what they saw, especially Lin's explosiveness. They would love to have Lin as the motor that keeps the Sharks, who finished next-to-last last season and was purchased by Yao Ming recently, running.

Lin had a tryout with Zhejing Thursday morning and did not disappoint. Zhejiang head coach Wang Fei even had a number of set plays designated for Lin in the two-hour practice.

Lin is expected to sign with either team for about US$10,000 per month plus incentives.

(Photo: Apple Daily)

Chennai 2009 - Taiwan women finish out of top three again

(Photo: FIBA.com)

CHENNAI (23rd FIBA Asia Women Championship) - A powerful performance midway through the first half – interrupted only by the first quarter break – helped Japan outsmart Chinese Taipei 72-57 and retain their bronze on Thursday.

The Fumikazu Nakagawa-trained team from the Land of the Rising Sun thus bagged the third berth available to represent FIBA Asia in the 2010 FIBA World Championship for Women scheduled to be held in Czech Republic.

“We had our ups and downs in this Championship, but we have finished on an up,” gushed Nakagawa.

“A few plans and a few didn’t, but what I am happy about is that the plans for the most crucial game worked,” he added.

Taipei kept the exchanges – in plays as well as scoring – almost equal for a better part of the first quarter, but only till Japan found ways to cope with a surprisingly off-colour Yuko Oga.

Noriko Koiso and Ai Mitani stepped up to compensate for Oga’s struggle especially in the first quarter, when she drew a blank on all her six field attempts.

Mitani fired in five points – capping a steal to go with a crisp three-pointer – and assisted Asami Yoshida for a long-ranger and Japan broke away from an equal 8-8 position to close the first quarter 18-11 ahead.

Li Wan-ting’s free-throw and Chu Yung-hsu’s success on the paint saved the blushes for Taipei in that period.

And when the second quarter opened, Oga had found her touch.

The Phoenix Mercury point-guard scored four – apart from an assist and a steal – and Japan scored the first 10 points of the second quarter and consolidated their position.

Li Wan-ting ended the drought for Taipei, but Japan were well on cruise mode thereafter.

Koiso who had scored the first eight points for Japan before Mitani sparked the charge, went on to top score the game with 21 points.

“I know I’m not the best player in my team. Nor am I the star of the team. Therefore, it feels really good when you contribute at a time which matters the most,” said Koiso.

Koiso also grabbed a game-high 13 rebounds.

Mitani, who accounted for 16 points, echoed Koiso’s words: “We know we had lost the opportunity to qualify for the World Championship last time. So our target was very clear when we arrived here. And we were not going to let it go at the most crucial time.”

Oga had a sub-par 10 points, but had six assists.

Yoshida led the game for assists with nine and 11 rebounds, as Japan won the battle of boards 41-26.

“They were far better prepared and better equipped,” said Taipei coach Lin Hung Ling-Yao.

Cheng Hui-yun’s 17 points was the highest for Taipei.

S Mageshwaran
FIBA Asia

Note: China beat Korea 91-71 to win gold.

Like father, like son?

Imagine that you have a father who was at one point known as "one of the best forwards in Asia" and now you're playing high school ball. The comparison is inevitable.

That was what happened to 16-year-old Cheng Chih-kwan, whose father Cheng Chih-lung has been known as one of the best small forward in Asia and teamed with Yao Ming prior to Yao's NBA career in Shanghai Sharks.

Calling Cheng, who is currently coaching Taiwan Mobile in the SBL, "Taiwanese version of Michael Jordan" is no exaggeration. He led Taiwan to an all-time best runner-up finish in the 1986 Asian Junior Championship as a teenager and later starred in the now-defunct pro league CBA (Chinese Basketball Alliance, 1994-1999), leading Hung-kuo Elephants to three straight titles under American coach Paul Coughter during the second half of the 1990's.

Cheng Chih-kwan was featured in an article by the Central News Agency on Monday. The 185cm (visibly closer to 180cm) high school freshman was playing for defending HBL champion Song-shan High School in the Asian U-16 Championship trial, which will name U-16 NT after the trial tournament.

The junior Cheng looks like a young Cheng Chih-lung but is still raw. What kind of basketball will he be remains to be seen. Give the credit to the elder Cheng though. He put his son in good hands. Song-shan HS head coach Huang Wan-long was known for stressing fundamental, defense and the right attitude.

(Photo: CNA)

Chennai 2009 - Taiwan enters semifinals

(FIBA.com)

CHENNAI (23rd FIBA Asia Women Championship) - Chinese Taipei played the ‘Catch me if you can’ to almost perfection and Thailand fell short of catching Taipei in the crucial junctures of the pivotal Level I game on Tuesday.

Taipei, a semifinalist at the last edition at Incheon ensured there was no dent in the East Asian monopoly of the last four, winning the game 76-66.

“It was a lot tougher than what we expected,” said Chinese Taipei coach Lin Hung Ling-Yao.

“We also had to preserve the players for the semifinals,” she added.

“Our preparations coming into the championship, especially in terms of the conditioning of the players is not great,” Lin Hung said.

“There was no point in outstretching ourselves,” she added.

Taipei broke away from the equally sparring Thais early in the second half and never looked back.

Lin Hung used 11 of her players and 10 of them scored.

Liu Chun-yi led the scoring with 16 points, and seven rebounds.

Lan Jui-yu scored 11, nine of them in the second half, as the others shared the task of scoring equally.

Juthamas Jantakan scored a game-high 22 points, and collected seven rebounds, for Thailand but unfortunately in a losing cause.

In the semifinals on Wednedsay, Chinese Taipei will play against the Level I toppers, which will be known after the China-Korea game tonight.

FIBA Asia

Chennai 2009 - Taiwan routed by China

(FIBA.com)

CHENNAI (23rd FIBA Asia Women Championship) - China’s coach Sun Fengwu was hampered by the forced absence of Guan Xin for the game against Chinese Taipei.

But that only hampered the champion outfit to take a little longer than normal to get into wonted rhythm.

Taipei, a semifinalist at Incheon two years ago, capitalized on that slow start and raced ahead 17-15 at the end of the first quarter.

But China, who meanwhile had found the means and the players to compensate for Guan Xin’s absence – caused by a upset stomach, from which she is unlikely to recover in time for the game against Korea tomorrow – came into their own in the second and there was no further problems.

China took control of the game early in the second quarter and grew in strength for an 82-54 win.

The win perched China on top of the leader-board along with Korea.

Chinese Taipei suffered their third loss in four games and will take on Thailand – who also have a similar record – in a virtual play-off for a place in the semifinals.

Ma Zhengyu scored seven of her team-high 13 points and Liu Dan six of her 10 in the second quarter to help China seize command.

Nan Chen and Chen Xiaoli each scored 12 points.

Lan Jui-yu’s game-high 22 was the highest for Taipei, but 15 of them came in the first half.

Liu Chun-yi scored 14 points.

FIBA Asia

Chennai 2009 - Korea too hot for Taiwan to handle

CHENNAI (23rd FIBA Asia Women Championship) - Jung Sunmin uncorked a vintage performance and defending champions Korea needed little more to beat Chinese Taipei 96-55 in a Level I game on Saturday.

Korea have thus won all their three games, but Taipei kept their hopes of a semifinals alive thanks to their 1-2 record and two other teams carrying a 0-3 record.

Jung Sunmin’s showing tonight was a lesson in action.

The 34-year-old enhanced her credentials as one of more all-round players on show falling just short of what would have been the first triple-double of the Championship.

The Shinhan Bank S-Birds superstar scored 15 points, effected 10 assists and collected seven rebounds.

What her statistics would have read had coach Lim Dal Shik not rested her for the entire fourth quarter!

“It doesn’t matter,” Jung Sunmin shrugged.

“What matters most is that it helped the team to win,” she added.

“They are not an easy team at all. We had to keep the pressure right through,” Jung Sunmin said.

Park Jung-eun was the top scorer for Korea with 17 points and Kim Kwe-ryong had an incredible 100% record for her 16 points.

Kim Kwe-ryong shot a 7/7 in field attempts and converted both the free-throws.

Lin Chi-wen was the highest scorer for Chinese Taipei with 12 points.

FIBA Asia

Taiwan women's NT 12-man roster for Chennai 2009

Taiwan women's NT 12-man roster for Chennai 2009

#     Name         P     Height     DOB
4     Fan-Shan HUANG     G     174cm     29/09/1987
5     Shih-Chieh CHANG     G     172cm     16/03/1986
6     Yu-Chun CHEN     F     176cm     07/03/1987
7     Jui-Yu LAN     G       171cm     02/08/1983
8     Chi-Wen LIN     C     186cm     19/08/1983
9     Yung-HsuCHU     F     185cm     08/01/1981
10     Wan-Ting LI     PF/C     180cm     23/12/1986
11     Hui-Yun CHENG     C     186cm     23/04/1977
12     Hui-Mei LIN     G/F     178cm     11/12/1981
13     Yi-Hung MA     G     176cm     27/11/1980
14     Ning CHANG     C    186cm     16/10/1987
15     Chun-Yi LIU     F    180cm     23/01/1981

Lin Chih-chieh heads for China

One day after CTBA cleared the way for Taiwanese players, Taiwan Beer announced that Lin Chih-chieh will go to China for a tryout with two CBA teams next week, local media reported.

Lin, accompanied by TB head coach Yen Chia-hua and marketing director Chen Jian-chou, will participate in tryouts for Shanghai and Zhejiang. The group is scheduled to leave for China next Monday and be back to Taiwan next Thursday.

Playing time will be the crucial factor of Lin's signing, Yen said, since every player wants to play.

According to Yen, Lin Chih-chieh will definitely spend his next season in China and Taiwan Beer will sign a pair of veterans -- Wu Chia-lung and Shin Jin-jan -- to fill Lin's void on the wing.