BANGKOK (2016 FIBA Asia U18 Championship) - Thailand may have twice fallen short of beating the Philippines in the 2016 SEABA U18 Championship earlier this year, but a couple of new additions may potentially give the Thais the needed boost as they are set to face the Filipinos again in the 2016 FIBA Asia U18 Championship in Tehran, Iran.

Historically, Thailand has not really been seen as a power in youth level Asian basketball. Their highest finish ever was third place in the 1980 edition, and the last time they qualified to the FIBA Asia U18 Championship was a decade ago in the 2006 iteration in Urumqi, China, where Thailand won 4 of their 7 games and finished eleventh overall.

Of course, Thailand’s youth teams have never really had players with exposure to professional league play and international experience, but that’s what makes this particular team stand out. One of the most notable players on Coach Sopon Pinitpatcharalert’s roster is a kid who currently plays pro ball back home: Attapong Leelaphipatkul of Thai General Equipment. Attapong already played in the 2013 FIBA Asia U16 Championship, and he is expected to be leading a new generation of potential stars at the U18 level.

Aside from Attapong, however, two guys who should also standout for coach Sopon are American-born Justin Bassey and Egypt-born Benjamin Cox. Bassey, who hails from Littleton, Colorado, is known as an athletic and versatile player. He possesses great guard skills, but he will probably see a lot more time in the frontcourt given how he is the tallest player on the team at 1.91m. Bassey put up big numbers in his final season at Colorado Academy — 23.0 points, 8.8 rebounds, 4.8 assists and 2.4 steals a game — and if he can translate that to great production in this tournament, Thailand may just be a dark horse to reach deep into the knockout rounds.

Another name on whom to keep tabs is Benjamin Cox. Cox was born in Egypt, but just finished his studies at Bromsgrove International School Thailand, where he starred for the varsity team. At 1.87m, Cox is the second-tallest player on this squad, and if he is able to be a tough customer in the paint, then his pairing with Bassey may just spell trouble for the other teams.

Thailand are with defending U18 champions China, SEABA rivals Philippines, Chinese Taipei, India and Iraq in Group A, while Iran, Indonesia, Japan, Kazakhstan, Lebanon and last year’s U16 champions Korea comprise Group B.

The Thais will open their campaign against India on Friday and then tackle Chinese Taipei the next day.

The top three teams at the end of this competition will qualify for the 2017 FIBA U19 World Championship, which will be played in Cairo, Egypt.

FIBA