MANILA (Enzo Flojo's Asia on my Mind) - When the 2015 FIBA Asia Championship tips off in a couple of weeks, we will certainly be treated to a host of new and emerging stars ready to take Asian basketball by storm.

There are players like Anatoliy Kolesnikov, Mohammad Jamshidi, Lee Jong-Hyun, and Zhou Qi, who are expected to flourish for their respective teams and become the foundations for the future.

There are also the likes of Mahdi Kamrani, Fad El Khatib, Liu Wei, Yi Jianlian, and Yang Dong-Geun, veteran players who are meant to lead their teams' campaigns to grab the continent's lone outright Asian qualifying place to the 2016 Rio Olympics.

And there are players who won't be there, but will forever be remembered fondly because of their contributions to Asian hoops. These are the guys who have enthralled us with their bewitching play on the hardwood and who have been able to lead their respective countries to new heights, but, for one reason or another, won’t be around in Changsha, China.

Here they are - some players we will miss in this year’s biggest bash:

Yasseen Musa (Qatar)
Musa has been a constant fixture and the undisputed face of Qatar basketball since first bursting onto the scene as wide-eyed youth player in the late 1990s. He has been present for Qatar in practically every Asian tournament, be it at the club or national team level. He helped the team finish third at the 2005 FIBA Asia Championship, which, in turn, enabled them to qualify for the 2006 FIBA World Championship in Japan. Given his size and skill-set, the one nicknamed the "Doha Dunker" proved to be a match-up nightmare for many of Qatar's foes. This is the first time in a very long time that Qatar will enter the FIBA Asia Championship without Musa. In fact, the only continental tournament in which he hasn't played for them was way back in 1991. In recent years, Musa has become a regular fixture in FIBA 3x3 competitions.

Kim Joo-Sung (Korea)
The 2.05m Kim has been a key member of Korea's national team dating back to 1998, when he was still a 19-year old center/forward out of Chung-Ang University. Back then, he was still a back-up to another iconic Korean player, Seo Jang-Hoon, but the young Kim eventually inherited the mantle as Korea's #1 big man. With the exception of the 2003 FIBA Asia Championship, Kim has been a mainstay of the national side, his uncanny footwork and soft finish around the basket anchoring the Korean offense in the frontcourt. He last played for his country at the 2014 Asian Games, helping the hosts take the gold medal. With Kim Joo-Sung out, a couple of youngsters, Kim Jong-Kyu and Lee Jong-Hyun in particular, have been tagged to be the foundation for the future of Korea’s national team.

Marcus Douthit (Philippines)
There have been many important naturalised players in FIBA Asia history and Marcus Douthit is certainly among the best to ever play for an adopted country. He first got involved in the Gilas Pilipinas program way back in 2009. He was the final choice for naturalised player of the national team after going through a long list of candidates that included CJ Giles, Jamal Sampson, Dwayne Jones, and Jared Homan. The Filipinos eventually settled on Douthit, whose size, skill-set, and, perhaps most importantly, demeanor fit all the needs of the team. Douthit eventually became a household name in FIBA Asia, putting up double-doubles left and right at the 2011 FIBA Asia Championship in Wuhan while helping the Philippines qualify for the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup after they finished second in the 2013 FIBA Asia Championship at home in Manila.

Kosuke Takeuchi (Japan)
- Unlike the first three players on this list, Takeuchi hasn't announced his retirement from international basketball. Instead, an injury will keep him away from the 2015 FIBA Asia Championship, which means that twin brother Joji will have to take much of the scoring and rebounding load. It just seems fair, of course, since it was Joji who missed the 2013 edition due to an injury of his own. In that competition, Kosuke did a lot of damage, averaging 11.0 points and 7.4 rebounds per contest. He is perhaps the best center in Japan right now and his absence will definitely hurt Team Hayabusa's chances to make it past into the latter rounds.

Enzo Flojo

FIBA

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