HOW TO HELP VICTIMS of TYPHOONS PEDRING & QUIEL

Hello there!

We are all aware of the devastation left by Typhoons Pedring and Quiel. And I'm sure most of you guys would like to help our fellow Filipinos who have been badly affected by these two typhoons. To those who are unaware of how to help but would like to help, I've compiled some information on how you can help by donating or volunteering via HABITAT FOR HUMANITY and WORLD VISION. Feel free to spread this with your friends, schoolmates, officemates!!

WORLD VISION:

World Vision is carrying emergency aid to areas in Manila, Malabon, Isabela, Bulacan & Zambales. WV has identified 32,800 families who badly need assistance. WV teams have begun distributing food & non-food items to these areas. WV is still accepting cash and in-kind donations such as:

canned goods

bottled water

biscuits

plastic basins

blankets

hygiene kits

school supplies

Bank deposits:

BPI acct # 4251-0024-15

Banco de Oro acct # 2700-4341-1

PSBank acct # 038-33200013-8

Metrobank acct # 060-7060-5186-41

Please fax deposit slips with name on it, along with the downloadable donation form to 374-7660 or email to wv_phil@wvi.org

You may send your goods donations to the World Vision office, 389 Quezon Ave, corner West 6th street, West Triangle, Quezon City.

You may text or call 0917-823-7277 for additional info. Or visit www.worldvision.org.ph

HABITAT FOR HUMANITY (Philippines)

Habitat is collecting the following:

towels

blankets

pails

water dippers

walis tingting

Or cash donation for shelter repair kits for Navotas, Malabon, Bicol, etc.

For goods donations, you may send them to Habitat for Humanity office at 3rd floor, 111 Paseo Condo Building, 111 Paseo de Roxas corner Legaspi Street, Makati.

For cash donations, you can deposit to BPI Checking acct # 2421-0014-67. Acct name Habitat for Humanity Philippines Foundation Inc. or send to the office as well. Official receipts will be issued.

Some of us here in Metro Manila may not be aware of the magnitude of the damage caused by these typhoons. I've posted some photos to show how terrible the situation is. Help is badly needed!! Each tiny donation can certainly make a difference! Let's start with ourselves!

Thank you so much!!

Chris

*Photos taken online from Sunstar & Tempo

My Reflections on the FIBA Asia (Part 2)

COACH RAJKO

We are very grateful and lucky to have Coach Rajko. There is no question that the new 'system' he has introduced to Philippine basketball has been effective both offensively and defensively, and it suits the international game. Of course, nobody is perfect but Coach Rajko is an extremely clever guy. Respected national coaches from other teams would go up to me and tell me how lucky we are to have Rajko as our coach. And more than the X and O's that he has taught us, for me, his biggest contribution is the non-negotiable values that he instills upon the team. "Work as hard and as HONEST as you can!" Those are his famous words. Even if he seldom smiles, I suppose this is the reason why he is so loved by the Filipino fans. It's tough to be a coach, there are many other 'experts' especially when you lose a game. But I cannot forget what he told us, "Even if I will be digging my own grave, I will continue to do what I believe is the right thing to do!" That's why we players have utmost respect for the guy.

What got me more emotional after the Korea game was when Coach started saying goodbye to the team and to the Philippines in the locker room. I remember in our first team building session 2 years ago, we played a game where each team member has to give one chip to just one person he trusts the most in the team. Many of us gave our chips to Coach Rajko. Coach Rajko gave me his chip. I cannot forget that. And now I feel like I've let him down.

For bringing Philippine basketball to another level, we must give utmost appreciation to Coach Rajko. And we have to admit, sometimes he is even 'more Filipino' than some of us through his sacrifice and dedication towards the improvement of Philippine basketball. At this moment, his status is uncertain but he already has bigger offers internationally and he will not have problems finding another job. That's for sure. Wherever he goes next, I wish him well. I think what he needs to do is to rest and take care of his health first and foremost.

ALL IN GOD'S PLAN

Throughout the tournament, I prayed the rosary every night. I've been reading a book of homilies (I'll talk about it in another entry). I spoke to God more than I usually do because I have more idle time when I'm abroad, which should not be the case though. We should make an effort to pray and talk to God as much as we can despite our busy schedules. After the loss, again I prayed for answers.

I remember what Jimmy (Alapag) told me after the game when I was feeling bad, "Making it to the final 4 is a huge step already. We cannot just expect to win the Gold overnight. It's a step by step process."

Then I thought about they way we lost to Korea, it was an unreal game! Like a divine hand had something to do with it. God is telling us something. Despite being unlucky in the last two games, He showed us throughout the tournament that we are very competitive with all the teams who participated, including the top teams that finished ahead of us. I believe it is His way of telling us that "you are a good team, but it is not your time yet. You must first fine tune and resolve all your divisions and differences! " God is a good God and He has a purpose for everything. It just wasn't meant to be yet.

I'm very very thankful to be given this rare opportunity to represent the country for the past 2+ years! It's truly a big big honor! It's both fun and painful but all worth it!

I'd also like to honor my teammates who have sacrificed tremendously for the country and poured their hearts out during the games, whether or not there's a lot at stake. It's been so much fun playing with some of the best players in the country, not to mention great guys as well. It's sad that we will have to part ways after years of practicing, traveling & competing in tough games together but I know they will make wonders for their respective teams in the PBA and I wish them all the best!

I believe in destiny, but for now, making it to the London Olympics wasn't meant to be. Sooner or later, I strongly believe that the Philippines will regain its top spot in Asian basketball. We saw how close we are. We just got to keep working towards that goal, together! I hope I will still be actively playing when that happens. But for now, life must go on and we have to keep getting better. 2013 is not so far away.

Once again, a super big THANK YOU to all of you for your unwavering love and support for the team!! You certainly keep us inspired! GO PILIPINAS! :)

Chris

P.S. After the heartbreaking loss to Korea, I bumped into Coach Baldwin of Jordan in the hotel lobby. He gave me a big hug and he said such simple yet wonderful words that hit the spot and I'd like to share it to you guys because it can be applied to all. He said "This is just the first of many more tougher games you will experience in life. Just remember to be the best player that you can be. More importantly, be the best person that you can be. Hold on to those two things and you will be fine."

My Reflections on the FIBA Asia (Part 1)

It's so ironic how I wrote about 'grabbing opportunities that come your way' in one of my recent posts. We just missed an opportunity of a lifetime for Philippine basketball. Our recent 4th place finish in the FIBA Asia, which was held in Wuhan China, drew mixed emotions. On one hand, it was a great success because the team was able to make it to the Final 4 quite convincingly after a series of victories against UAE, Bahrain, Jordan, Japan and Syria in the elimination round and against Chinese Taipei in the Quarterfinals. Basketball experts say the top 4 finish hasn't been done in 20 something years and probably the best finish since the emergence of the middle eastern nations. But after the quarterfinals, horror began!

I talked about painful losses, but the wounds of this one will take a lifetime to heal. I thought I'd somehow get used to dealing with lost games/tournaments but this one is just the most painful and most difficult.

JORDAN

The loss against Jordan in the semifinals was tough and painful, but nothing compared to the one against Korea. Jordan is a tall, experienced and skilled team, not to mention they have Coach Baldwin whom I truly respect not only because of his ingenuity and professionalism inside the hardcourt but also his kind, humble and friendly personality off the court. Those who closely followed the FIBA Asia would know that Iran (ranked #1 in the QF) was the clear favorite to make it to the finals, and we knew that if we can get pass Chinese Taipei in the quarterfinals, that we would have to face a huge road block , which is Iran. Having included Kazemi in their lineup, Iran has never fielded a stronger team. But guess what, they were upset by Jordan in the quarterfinals. When we heard this, we suddenly saw a crack in the door leading up to the Olympics. This was because we knew we would match up better with Jordan than Iran and that we've defeated them several times in prior games including that in the elims.

Unfortunately, the Jordanians were very focused and they did their scouting homework excellently , causing us to lose our offensive fluidity, as a result of their switching man-zone defenses. I will not expound on the details anymore. Basically, they deserved to win that game.

KOREA

In the game against Korea for the bronze medal, it was pretty much a won game for us until the dying minutes of the 4th quarter where Korea got their shooting confidence. One layup or a pair of free throws would have put our lead up to 12 or 14 points coming into the last 5 minutes of the game and that would have been enough to put the Koreans away. But no, instead, they brought the lead down to single digits and it gave them hope until they finally found their shooting stroke and ended up winning by 2 points! That shocking game for us will be recorded as one of the greatest comebacks in the Korean history books.

What makes it more painful, was that we had everything going our way. From the body language of both teams at the beginning of the game, our players were more energetic, motivated and clearly wanted the win more. Korea had an 8pm game the night before and they look very tired. Our defense made them miss a lot of shots throughout the game, but they also missed 3 or 4 point blank layups in the 1st quarter. Some of their key players were even injured. Everything was going right for us until the unexpected happened! We were stunned!

MISSED A GOLDEN OPPORTUNITY

One of the main reasons why I felt some regret is because we missed a golden chance to place ourselves in the history books by at least bringing home a medal for the country. That hasn't been done in decades, not even by some of our basketball idols. We had it in the palm of our hands but somehow it slipped away.

I have to admit that the Pinoy fans have been extremely supportive and appreciative of the result but still there's that feeling of disappointment that we could have made them even more proud, knowing that the Philippines is still a basketball-crazy nation! It was so close. We've been receiving very supportive and appreciative messages on twitter, and since we got back, right when we stepped off the plane or wherever I go, people would go up to me and congratulate me for a job well done but there's always that expression of 'Sayang!' whether explicitly said or not. You can see it through their faces.

TO BELIEVE AND TO INSPIRE

But more than all that, the main reason why I felt disappointed not winning the Gold or any medal at that is because I wanted the Gilas team to prove something to the nation. Something that can truly inspire us to dream beyond our imagination. From the very beginning, only a handful of people believed in the program. Many people laughed when we said we were aiming for the Olympics. Some said that the Philippines should forget about basketball and focus on other sports since basketball is a big man's game and we Filipinos obviously don't have the height. But this gave us motivation, the reason why we wanted to succeed so badly is not for any personal glory but because we wanted to inspire the millions of Filipinos that tasks like this that seem impossible can be achieved despite the odds. We, Pinoys are often underdogs. We live in deep poverty, but if we first BELIEVE, then through extreme hard work, cooperation, sacrifice and dedication, nothing is impossible!

Quick update on Gilas at the FIBA Asia

Hello there,

The team arrived here in Wuhan close to midnight last night (Tuesday). It was an extremely long trip which got delayed further. From 4:30am at NAIA1, we finally got to our hotel rooms at 11pm. Connecting flight in Beijing got delayed. We spent almost 8 hours in the Beijing airport, which i used to finally write my blog below about the NBA experience. It felt like we traveled all the way to Europe when in fact, Wuhan is just an hour plane ride west of Shanghai. That wasn't it. We had to get up at 7am this morning for our 9am practice schedule. Anyway, we got to rest in the afternoon.

Team spirit is okay. We are all excited to play! We play UAE tomorrow (Thurs) then China on Friday, then Bahrain on Saturday. Games should be televised live in Manila through BTV & AKTV.

I'll try to keep you posted on any developments through this blog since twitter, FB and other social networking sites are blocked here in China.

Again, thank you so much for your continued support and prayers!!

Let's go Philippines!

Chris

Gilas vs NBA Stars in Manila

It's been more than a month since the NBA superstars gave the Filipino basketball fans an experience of a lifetime. Until today, random people would go up to me asking how it felt to play against Kobe, D-Rose, Durant, CP3 and the rest of the gang. They were super excited to hear what it was like guarding Kobe and them so I promised to blog about it. As a matter of fact, the sports editors of a major daily were too excited and mistakenly placed my name as an author of a reflection wrote by my brother, Charles, about the Smart-NBA experience that was published after the game. I think they forgot that he is a member of our coaching staff that's why he wrote his experience using the first person point of view. Anyway, my memory of that day is still very vivid and I'm sure the same goes for those who caught the game. Hope this blog isn't too late.

For those who were able to watch the game live, no doubt it was an unbelievable experience!! For me, and I can speak for most if not all of my teammates, it was a surreal experience! It was a like a dream come true of a dream we never even dreamt of! Am i making sense? It was like bringing over the starting 5 of the US national team. That night after the game, I was checking out the photos of the game over the internet and just sitting in my bed thinking 'did this really happen??'.

Some might not understand how big a deal it is for us basketball players. If you were a fan of pop music, it was like performing on stage or jamming alongside your pop idols Taylor Swift, Miley Cyrus, Lady Gaga or Justin Bieber. If you were a soccer fan, it was like playing against David Beckham, Christiano Ronaldo or Messi. You get the point.

I first heard about this game when they informed us, the Gilas team, that our mini Europe pocket tournament in July will not push through due to injuries and lack of players in our team. But instead, they are arranging a game with a selection of NBA stars in Manila to prepare for the Fiba Asia. I thought it was a long shot! Initially, we heard rumors that Kobe wasn't coming, then Durant wasn't coming, Blake Griffin was coming, this and that. Eventually, the lineup was final. Kobe, D-Rose, Durant, CP3, Tyreke Evans, McGee, Derek Fisher, James Harden, Derek Williams. Wow! Friends who never followed basketball in their lifetime suddenly would be texting me asking for tickets. It became THE event to be in.

Game day

In the locker room of the newly inaugurated Smart Araneta Coliseum, Coach Rajko reminded us that no one is allowed to bring phones, cameras nor pentel pens to the court. No picture taking, no autograph signing… NO RESPECT until after the game! He emphasized that this is not an 'all-star game' but rather it was a tune-up game for Gilas as part of our preparation for FIBA Asia. He wanted the sold-out Araneta crowd, who paid thousands of pesos per ticket, to enjoy seeing their NBA idols but at the same time, appreciate a competitive and serious game.

Coach Rajko then assigns the match ups like he normally does before a game. "Mark (Barroca), get Chris Paul. Chris Tiu, you take Derek Rose. Chris Lutz, Kevin Durant. Marcus, take McGee. Japeth, guard Kobe." Honestly, when I heard that, I wasn't sure if i was dreaming. Did I hear right? Never in my lifetime did I think of guarding D-Rose, the reigning MVP.

During the game, luckily, I had the chance to guard everyone because of the switches in matchup. Most of the time, I was guarding Kobe. I didn't mind at all since I liked the challenge but mostly because I knew I would have a lot of souvenir photos after the game. He is just so big, strong and heavy, and yet he had the quickness, precision and creativity to beat you using one of his million moves. D-rose and Cp3 are extremely quick and shifty but I just kept in mind what one of our coaches tipped me when guarding them, "don't go for the fake, just stay in front and make them shoot over you" .

Durant has unbelievable handles for a 6'11 guy. McGee is soooo long plus he got the "hops". In fact, I was 'posterized' in the dying minutes, with his statue of liberty dunk from close to the free throw line.

Post game

We lost the game by 8 points. It wasn't a bad result for us. Before the game, I already conditioned myself to think that I was not going to get any autograph nor photo with the NBA guys due to strict security measures. I usually do that so i don't get disappointed. But by good fortune, we had a great opportunity to mingle with them briefly inside the court after the game. Since I wasn't prepared, I took off my only piece of clothing that was dry, my Adizero Crazy-light shoe and had each of the big 4 sign it on each side.

And to cap it off, I got a photo with Kobe , thanks to kuya Marcus (Douthit), who happened to be his former teammate with the Lakers. In exchange, I got Pacman (who happened to be with us at ringside) to sign his jersey. He was ecstatic!

Go Gilas

The NBA All-stars led by as many as 20 points during the game. From the very start of the game, the jam-packed Araneta crowd would erupt in excitement and enthusiasm every time their idols would score or make a highlight play.They were like playing at home. Gilas felt like the away team. But unexpectedly during the 4th quarter, there was a sudden shift in emotion. This was the moment that touched and moved me the most. When we cut their lead down to single digits, suddenly the 20,000+ people in the stadium were chanting "defense, defense!" when they had possession. And each time Gilas would score, there was a roaring cheer! I got goosebumps. Until that time, I never felt that kind of support and loyalty towards the national team in years. In our PBA stint, we even got boo-ed occasionally. At least vs the NBA guys, we got cheers! It really made me feel proud to be a member of the

national team.

Thank you

Hats off to MVP and the people behind the MVP foundation for making this happen! This event brought basketball entertainment to another level for the Pinoy fans. Hopefully it will inspire more Filipinos to follow and appreciate the sport, both locally and internationally. For me personally, I'm very grateful to the Lord for making this once in a lifetime opportunity happen. If I had not been a member of Gilas at the right place and time, this would have not happened for me. It will be a story I can indeed share to my kids and my grandkids.

To the young kids out there, make sure to dream big and work towards that dream! Be the best that you can be in your field. You will never know when that big break or once in a lifetime opportunity will pass you by, and you got to be ready when that happens! Just enjoy what you do and keep working hard for God's glory. You can't go wrong. All the best!

AMDG

Chris

P.S. Thank you to Tito Philip Sison for the photos

Hello, Singapore!!

First of all, I'd like to thank you all for the very supportive and encouraging messages that you've expressed to me & the Gilas team. It certainly gives us motivation to compete knowing that you are all behind us and that you appreciate our efforts in trying to win for our country. But for now, let's take a break from basketball.

This entry is long overdue. But I felt that it's not too late to write something about my last two trips to Singapore since they have been quite an experience for me.

Let's talk first about my trip last July 2010. The sole purpose of this trip was to catch Jay Chou's "The Era" Concert tour. (Unfortunately, he doesn't have a significant following enough for him to come to Manila) I've been waiting to watch him perform live and this was the perfect chance since we were given a week off from Gilas training after competing in the Jones Cup in Taipei. Wait, there's a little problem though, tickets for the 'decent' seat sections were already sold out AND it would fall right smack in conflict with the Ateneo - La Salle UAAP game. But I said to myself, this would be a dream come true and a once in a lifetime experience! So i exhausted all means to find 'good seats'. And i did. I got 2 tickets about 20 rows away from the stage and i knew these were not bad at all. I was quite familiar with the Singapore Indoor Stadium because we've played against the Singapore Slingers there several times before with Gilas and previously when I played with the RP Harbour Center team which competed in the 2007 SEA games.

Anyway, i went with my cousin Les who was a big Jay fan as well. We went for 3 days and 2 nights and stayed at the Fairmont hotel because we were able to get a great deal. What got us even more excited was when one of the hotel staff revealed to us that Jay Chou was staying in the Swissotel, which was literally beside our hotel and they even had an indoor connection to get from one hotel to the other. Despite having a huge fan base in Singapore, I was surprised not to see any fan girls waiting at the lobby to catch a glimpse of Jay or to have their posters signed. Maybe its a cultural thing, Singaporeans are more behaved and they don't stalk as much we do?

That's our hotel and the Swissotel right beside it.










Check out the view from my room. You can see the majestic Marina Bay Sands and the rest of the skyline.









That's the view from my room. Apparently, they were having rehearsals for their independence day celebration that's why there were tanks. Pretty cool actually! They were firing deafening canon shots too!









Concert was amazing! Production was very extravagant with lots of laser and LED lights. Jay's performance was excellent as expected. Towards the middle of the concert, we decided to walk closer to the stage and stand along the aisle to get a better view. And to our amazement, the locals were very kind and friendly to let us through. I expected it to be much more difficult to make your way through crazy fan girls. I knew all his songs so I really enjoyed the show! In fact, I decided to watch him a second time in Malaysia! Hehe! After the concert, we were lucky enough to catch a glimpse of Jay leaving the hotel with his entourage. He is smaller than i thought. (Hey, for the record, we didn't stalk him ok? We were just having a few drinks at the hotel lobby when he passed by :) )



Aside from the concert, we also took time out to enjoy the city and most especially, the food! It was here where I tried my very FIRST Happy Lemon drink, at the food court of Ion mall located at the basement. My first Happy Lemon drink, Lemon Yogurt w/ Aloe! I loved it instantly! Very refreshing!







For dinner, my cousin Dexter, who was working with P&G Singapore at that time, took us to this hawker place called Melbens, which served great Singaporean Chilly crab. Not many tourists, mostly locals. Nothing too fancy. No aircon. A must-try if you want authentic Singaporean food.




For Hainanese chicken lovers, you must go to Wee Nam Kee. The place was just so packed and the queue was so long. I love Hainanese chicken! I've tried the Wee Nam Kee in Manila at the Ayala Triangle Park. Not too bad, price is reasonable as well.

We also walked around little India. And just nearby, there's this little street called Haji lane with lots of quaint shops and cafes. We grabbed some homemade ice cream in this place called Pluck. They also have some cute souvenir / specialty items, which the girls loved of course.



Of course we couldn't afford to miss the hyped-up Marina Bay Sands. Its grandeur was overwhelming! By the way, make sure to bring your passports if you want to enter the casino.







































My next trip to Singapore was in April of this year for the Adidas Sports Style Fashion show. For the first time in Adidas history, the five labels under adidas Sports Style (Y3, Porsche Design Sport, SLVR, NEO, Originals), including adidas by Stella McCartney were presented on the same stage. The event was held at the Ngee Ann City Civic Plaza along Orchard Road. It was a regional event with the other Southeast Asian nations taking part in the show as well. Each country had 1 endorser representative, except for Singapore which had several since they were the hosts.

Believe it or not, I had to be a ramp model for a night. Not really my thing. Thanks to Adidas Philippines, I finally did my first catwalk after almost 5 years! It was a very exclusive event though, mostly for media and retail partners.







Here I am modeling the NEO line , which was a very colorful collection targeted mainly for the young ones! It was very casual and I had fun doing it! The best part was getting to meet the other endorsers like former Miss Universe Natalie Glebova (Thailand), Carmen Soo (Malaysia), Aqi of Alexa band (Indonesia) , and various Singaporean personalities. All very accomplished in their own fields!

Here's a photo of my cousin, friend and my mom who accompanied me as my chaperone. (Yeah I know, she looks like my sister alright! She gets that a lot!)






We were all checked in at the Grand Park Orchard just across the venue. Not a bad hotel too, very modern. After the event, we had an after-party at the Boathouse, just across the Fullerton hotel. Great night view of the bay and the night lights of the buildings at the background. Then, we decided to check out Kudeta, a bar by the boat-shaped structure on the roof deck of the Marina Bay Sands. The view was just beautiful! If you just want to have a chill night with a great view of the city, I suggest you check out Kudeta. If you're a hotel guest, you can also take a dip there in the infinity pool next to the lounge. Too bad I didn't get to take a photo.
That's me, Carmen, Tessa Prieto, Natalie and Bruce, a popular architect from Singapore who also did the catwalk.

Unfortunately, we had to leave for Manila first thing the following morning so I could make it on time for training, as we were in the middle of the PBA conference where Gilas joined as a guest team.

I always look forward to visiting Singapore whether for work or for vacation. There are many reasons why I love it! First, I can practice my Chinese with the locals but at the same time, they can also speak and understand English when I'm having a shortage of Chinese words. Plus, it is very convenient to get around. Aside from the excellent food, I'm really impressed with the discipline and drive of the people, its cleanliness and efficiency. I guess that's why they have become a first world 'Tiger' nation. I'm sure we Filipinos can assimilate these traits into our culture as well in order for us to move forward.

Anyway, that's it for now. Until next time, Singapore! Byebye 'La'!

Chris

P.S. Thanks to my cousin Macy for the fashion show photos! Rest of the photos were from my digicam. All photos were compressed for easy upload.

22nd FIBA Asia Champions Cup

Hi there friends, some info you might want to know about the FIBA Asia Champions Cup from May 28 to June 05, 2011 held here in Manila.

Participating Teams:

Group A

Jordan (ASU)
Malaysia (WKL Dragons)
Iraq (Duhok)
Saudi Arabia (Al Ittihad)
Philippines (Smart Gilas)

Group B

Lebanon (Al Riyadi)
Qatar (Al Rayyan)
UAE (Al Shabab)
I.R. Iran (Mahram)
Syria (AL Jalaa)

Elimination Games Schedule for Smart Gilas Pilipinas: (Games will be held at Ultra in Pasig)
May 28 (Sat) 6pm vs Saudi Arabia
May 29 (Sun) 6pm vs Malaysia
May31 (Mon) 8pm vs Iraq
June 1 (wed) 8pm vs Jordan

Format:
Single round robin for each group. Top 4 teams from each group advance. Quarterfinals is a knockout crossover between 1vs4 & 2vs3 teams. Winners advance to the semis. Winners of semis advance to the finals. All games starting quarterfinals are knockout games.

Tickets:
You can purchase tickets at any SM ticketnet branch. Or you can call 4702222 for information. Ticket prices are not more than P250. Hurry because tickets are running out!

TV Coverage:
Live on IBC13

I'd like to personally invite all you Filipino basketball fans to come and support your National Team! This is a very rare chance to watch a very prestigious FIBA tournament like this LIVE! The middle eastern teams will be bringing most of their national team players plus 2 imports. Teams to watch out for are Iran, Lebanon, Qatar, Syria, Jordan, but most especially the first two. Iran has won this tournament back to back in Jakarta (2009) & Qatar (2010) and their core players (Afagh, Kamrani, Samad Nikkah Bahrami) will be coming as well. Lebanon will be bring their national team players as well plus 7'2 ex-NBA Loren Woods. The legendary Fadi El Khatib & Egyptian star Ishmael are in the lineup too but i don't know if they will play. So that should be very exciting! Very high level of basketball.

This is the best chance for us to unite as one nation and cheer for country! See you guys at the games :)

Chris

P.S. This is not yet the Olympic qualifier. The Olympic qualifier, which is the FIBA ASIA CHAMPIONSHIP, will be held in September in Wuhan, China.