Petrochimi remain a title contender at Champions Cup despite Haddadi's absence
TEHRAN (FIBA Asia Champions Cup 2017) - Petrochimi will enter the FIBA Asia Champions Cup 2017 without the country's best player, but they still have a roster deep enough to make a title run.
TEHRAN (FIBA Asia Champions Cup 2017) - Petrochimi will enter the FIBA Asia Champions Cup 2017 without the country's best player, but they still have a roster deep enough to make a title run.
| Petrochimi Iran 12-man roster for FIBA Asia Champions Cup 2017 | |||
| Mohammadreza Bahramzad | Mirza Begic | Saeid Davarpanah | Aaron Geramipoor |
| Arsalan Kazemi | Sajjad Mashayekhi | Meisam Mirzaei | Navide Niktash |
| Oshin Sahakian | Willie Warren III | Behnam Yakhchali | Mohammadhossein Zakeri |
Without the hulking presence of Hamed Haddadi in the middle, the Iranians will rely on rising Meisan Mirzaei to fill in the slot along with Slovenian import Mirza Begic and English-born Iranian center Aaron Geramipoor. Mirzaei played as Iran's third-string center at the recent FIBA Asia Cup, averaging under 2 points and around 2 rebounds while playing 5 minutes per game. He will certainly get more playing time here. Begic last played for Croatian side KK Cedevita Zagreb in the Eurocup, putting up around 4 points, 5 rebounds and 1 block per contest. Geramipoor, meanwhile, is a graduate of Seton Hall in the US NCAA who last saw action for Spanish club Cafes Candelas Breogan Lugo, registering modest numbers in 21 games.
With Haddadi choosing to rest up and prepare for his campaign in the 2017-2018 CBA season, Petrochimi's firepower will come from a few national team stalwarts like versatile forward Arsalan Kazemi and the backcourt duo of Sajjad Mashayekhi and Behnam Yakhchali. All three played important roles for Iran in their podium finish at the FIBA Asia Cup, and they will surely be the backbone of Petrochimi's offense in this competition.
American guard Willie Warren III is Petrochimi's second import. The 28-year-old 1.93m wingman is a regular fixture at the CBA, where he last played for the Zhejiang Golden Bulls. He's a scoring machine, averaging nearly 30 points per game in the 2016-2017 CBA season, and he will be one of the offensive focal points for coach Mehran Shahintab here.
Petrochimi were drawn into Group A together with Thailand's Mono Vampire, Kazakhstan's BC Astana, Palestine's Sareyyet Ramallah and the Chooks To Go team from the Philippines. Defending champions China Kashgar are in Group B together with squads from the United Arab Emirates, India, Lebanon and Chinese Taipei. The top four teams in each group will move on to the knockout Quarter-Finals, where the victors will advance to the Semi-Finals. The winners in the Semi-Finals will dispute the FIBA Asia Champions Cup 2017 crown in the Final.
FIBA