'Re' time? 'Pre' time? Tough call!

KUALA LUMPUR (Mageshwaran's AsiaScope) - Under ordinary circumstances, at the end of an arduous and long-drawn domestic season it would be normal for the players and coaches to head into holiday mood. But with a heady, and heavy, international calendar looming ahead, things are far from relaxing for all the top players in the basketball world these days.

The three teams that represent FIBA Asia at the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup to be played in Spain (30 August-14 September) all have their work cut out, but then that's only expected. Even for many in the rest of the top-eight of the 27th FIBA Asia Championship in Manila, Philippines, from where the teams made it to Spain 2014, it’s all about hard work, and harder work.

Iran: Memi's predicament with Team Melli
Memi Becirovic called a mammoth 42-member roster for training which began this past Sunday and has lined up nine more to join soon, but the massive number to watch is the least of worries for the Slovenian play-caller.

The reigning FIBA Asia champions handled the situation of sending a team to the ongoing 14th WABA Championship rather adroitly - by giving the U18 team much needed additional exposure before the 23rd FIBA Asia U18 Championship to be played in Doha, Qatar (19-28 August) - but Becirovic has his hands full in picking the final core of players of Spain.

The 5th FIBA Asia Cup to be played in Wuhan, China from 11-19 July presents a wonderful opportunity to finalize the plans, but with the Wuhan event offering a direct qualification berth for next year’s FIBA Asia Championship, Becirovic’s predicament only gets more complicated.

X Factor: Arsalan Kazemi, Behnam Yakhchali

Philippines: Reyes has to just wait and watch
Philippines coach Chot Reyes' position is diametrically opposite, but equally unenviable. The PBA, in a welcome and generous gesture decided to squeeze out the season's final conference 2014 Governor's Cup, but the flip side is that Reyes cannot have any of the players available for training till the season finishes.

That the competition in the PBA is getting more intense with each game in the hectic schedule leaves Reyes crossing his fingers and praying for all the players to remain healthy.

X Factor: The performance of players who were not included in Reyes' original training roster announced as early as February.

Korea: Naturalization calls
Korea coach Yoo Jae-Hak may have lost only to Iran and Philippines at Manila 2013, but is certainly not ahead of either in the preparation.
The complexity of choosing a naturalized player for Spain 2014 - with an additional eye on the 2014 Asian Games which Korea will host in Incheon weeks later - certainly doesn't make the coach's task any easier with Moon Tae-Jong able to join the camp almost a good month after the roster was announced.

X Factor: Naturalised player, Ha Seung-jin

China: Redemption mode
The FIBA Asia giant failed to qualify for Spain 2014 and opted out of the race for a wildcard entry, but their plight is far from comfortable.

On the contrary, the pressure on coach Gong Luming, who helms China in an international game for the first time since the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, has only gotten more severe.

The expectations, as always in China's case, are certainly weighing heavy on the real preparations.

X Factor: Wang Zhelin, Zhou Qi

Chinese Taipei: Nothing to lose
Chinese Taipei made it to the Semi-Finals of a FIBA Asia Championship for the first time in their history last year, and ever since have gone strutting around with celebratory confidence and commitment.

Surely the top brass in Taipei are committed to consolidate on the huge result that came in Manila 2013 - including beating China in the Quarter-Finals - dividing their pool of national players into two groups.

Last heard, a development team but including Quincy Davis - one of the chief architects of the Manila 2013 success - was heading to Wuhan under Otis Hughley with Hsu Chin-Tse watching the action from the sidelines.

X Factor: Challenge of blending the 'A' and 'B' team players.

Jordan: Al Nashama's hard work to be back in business
Jordan may have fallen down in results and rankings at Manila 2013, but have made all the right noise in the past couple of weeks starting with the appointment of the legendary Rajko Toroman as the coach.

Talismanic point guard Sam Daghles and naturalized 'scoring machine' Rasheim Wright are back in the national team after more than two years, and the team is well on its way to qualify for the 5th FIBA Asia Cup.

As Rajko pointed out in an interview with FIBA Asia as soon he took over, "it's only the start."

Like I said right at the start, there is nothing called as off-season any more in international basketball. More the merrier?

So long…

S Mageshwaran

FIBA Asia

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