NONTHABURI (FIBA Asia Champions Cup 2018) – The FIBA Asia Champions Cup is a stage for the top clubs in Asia to showcase their talents amongst each other. Here at the 2018 edition of the tournament, there will be three clubs set to make their debut among Asia’s finest to prove how good they are.

The FIBA Asia Champions Cup debutants are the Meralco Bolts, the SK Knights, and Alvark Tokyo.

The Meralco Bolts will be making a lot of noise as the first team ever from the Philippines Basketball Association (PBA) to play in the tournament. The Philippines have had their share of successs in the tournament with 4 total championships from 4 different clubs, but no other Filipino club has been able to win it all since 1996. The Meralco Bolts, led by National Team guard Baser Amer and foreign player Allen Durham, have the chance to end the 22-year draught in their debut.

The SK Knights of Korea were able to win the KBL championship for the second time in franchise history, getting them a ticket to their first ever FIBA Asia Champions Cup. They will be the first Korean team since 2009 to play in the tournament since Sangmu Phoenix. National Team scorer Kim Sun-Hyung finally got his first KBL title with the team and now he has a chance to win a FIBA Asia Champions Cup as well to cap off a spectacular season.

Alvark Tokyo also had an impressive season themselves, finally winning a championship in the B.League. The team was a cohesive unit from top to bottom and their efforts resulted in a resounding championship run. Rising Star Daiki Tanaka has had a stellar career and took it up another notch, winning the B.League Finals MVP award. He and another young up-and-comer Yudai Baba will be expected to star as Alvark Tokyo makes their FIBA Asia Champions Cup debut. They will be the first Japan club since 1999 to play in the FIBA Asia Champions Cup and will aim to make it a memorable one.

Alvark Tokyo and the Meralco Bolts are both in Group B, while the SK Knights were drawn into Group A.

FIBA