FIBA Basketball
USA - Stiebing is relishing Qatar adventure
DOHA (FIBA World Championship 2006) - Qatar are preparing for their first-ever appearance in the FIBA World Championship later this year and a big reason for that is the work of American coach Joey Stiebing.Having spent many years as a coach in the NCAA's Division I, Stiebing, who hails from New Orleans, took a year out of basketball.But the offer of the Qatar
DOHA (FIBA World Championship 2006) - Qatar are preparing for their first-ever appearance in the FIBA World Championship later this year and a big reason for that is the work of American coach Joey Stiebing.
Having spent many years as a coach in the NCAA's Division I, Stiebing, who hails from New Orleans, took a year out of basketball.
But the offer of the Qatar job was too good an offer to turn down and Stiebing has not looked back since.
He has helped shape Qatar into a major player in Asia, and despite being affected by the New Orleans flooding last year, he is set to lead Qatar against the world's finest in Japan.
PA Sport spoke to Stiebing on behalf of FIBA.com about the challenge of helping Qatar establish themselves on the world stage.
FIBA: Many congratulations on leading Qatar into the FIBA World Championship 2006 for the first time in the country's history. Has it sunk in that you will be competing against great teams like the United States, Greece, and Argentina in Japan?
Joey Stiebing: It's sunk in a little bit. We know we'll be up against teams much better than us, but that's why you play the game - to accept the challenge and see how much improvement you can make. I can tell you the players have certainly accepted that challenge.
FIBA: What were your expectations before the FIBA Asia Championship (in Qatar last September) and did hosting the event give you a major advantage?
Joey Stiebing: We have a great record at home, I think it's 19-2, so I knew home-court advantage would be important for us, and we won every game by about 20 points until the semi-finals, when we were beaten by Lebanon.
We knew that we could have challenged China in the final and given them a run for their money so I think it was a good opportuntity wasted.
I must give credit to Lebanon but our decision making and shot selection was bad and it cost us.
For that game Lebanon actually had lots of fans there, even more than us, so in the end, home advantage didn't count.
FIBA: Everyone wants to know about Qatar's players. Who have been the leaders in your team, the players who have meant the most in terms of qualifying?
Joey Stiebing: We're lucky in that we don't have a dominant player where one player scores 20 points every game. We have five or six players capable of scoring 20 points and, usually, its one of them that steps up and does it.
But we do have one or two players that are really doing well for us. Daoud Mousa is one of them, but there's also Khalid Sulliman and Erfan Ali Saeed, and hopefully, we can pick up a player or two before August that will help even more.
FIBA: Will being an unknown to most of your opponents work to Qatar's advantage in the FIBA World Championship?
Joey Stiebing: China, Japan and Lebanon know us well because we play each other so often but most teams are so well coached and will scout you, so we won't be able to get anything by them or pull the wool over their eyes.
FIBA: What is your main aim going into the FIBA World Championship?
Joey Stiebing: I've not talked about it yet with the team yet but I think we can think get out of our pool. That is my aim, to make it into the last 16, and I think we have a legitimate chance to do that. We've got to play to the best of our abilities, but we're not going there just for the experience. We're not going with that attitude at all.
FIBA: How are your preparations going at this stage?
Joey Stiebing: We're taking a bit of a break at the moment before we get cranked up for the World Championship. We'll get together again on February 15 and start practising two or three times a week. Then we're trying to arrange two or three friendlies for the end of March, start of April, against some European clubs or national teams. On June 15 we'll begin a training camp in Slovenia and maybe have some more games there, before going to Los Angeles or Las Vegas to play in a tournament in July. Also in July, we might play in the Jones Cup and the Stankovic Cup. Then in August we'll have our final training in Jordan before going to Japan.
FIBA: This is an important year for Qatar, but what about the future? Are you optimistic that regardless of what happens in Japan, Qatar are an emerging force in Asia or is there not much talent in the pipeline?
Joey Stiebing: The team is on the rise. We finished third in the Asian Games for the first time in 2003 and we followed that up with another third, and we could have done even better.
We've also won other tournaments, like the FIBA Asia Stankovic Cup (November 2004), the Gulf Cup (December 2004), and the West Asian Games (December 2005), and I feel they've the chance to get even better.
The players have quality and they're willing to learn so there's no reason why Qatar can't continue to be succesful.
FIBA: Why do you think Qatar have now developed into one of Asia's strongest nations over recent years?
There's great administration from Rashid Abdula (asst. general secretary and head team manager) and Sheikh Sauod (president of the Basketball Federation of Qatar and president of FIBA Asia). They've allowed us to arrange many training camps to help us try to get better. They've given us the opportunity to compete, and other teams in the region can't do that. It's difficult to get support like that and when you get it, it feels like winning the lottery. The players are willing to learn and get better, it's well organised from top to bottom, and that has only increased our chances of success.
FIBA: How important is it for Asia to be hosting its first FIBA World Championship for Men since 1978?
Joey Stiebing: It's been hosted in the Phillipines before, and other events have been in China, but to go to a small country like Japan for the first time says a lot about how basketball is growing in this part of the world. If basketball is to get bigger and better in this region then it needs to host these events and let people see how exciting the game is. It will only help to raise awareness and promote basketball in our part of the world.
FIBA: Were you surprised that FIBA decided to take one of their major events to the Far East, instead of staging the competition in a country where basketball is firmly entrenched?
Joey Stiebing: I wouldn't say I was surprised. I think it's good for the game that FIBA puts these events in different parts of the world, like they did with the Under-21 Championship in Argentina. I also think its good from a cultural standpoint that players are able to see and play in different parts of the world.
FIBA: What does it mean to be coaching in a prestigious event like the FIBA World Championship?
Joey Stiebing: It's a great honour. It wasn't until I arrived in Qatar that I found out how big an event the World Championship is for teams all over the world, and it's great to test myself against some of the best coaches in world basketball.
FIBA: Where did you discover the game and when did you begin coaching?
Joey Stiebing: I started playing American football because it's huge in the region I come from (Louisiana), but when I was about nine years old I played my first game of basketball and I fell in love with the game straight away. I played it right through High School, but I didn't play at College because I was wasn't quite good enough. But I worked with Dale Brown (head coach at Louisiana State University), who coached players like Shaquille O'Neal and Chris Jackson, and I learned a great deal from him about coaching. I then coached at High School for five years and in College for 11 years, and I've now been coaching in Qatar for the last three years.
FIBA: Were you affected by the flooding catastrophe?
Joey Stiebing: I was in Qatar at the time. I have four daughters but I am divorced so they are back at home. I was trying to call but couldn't get through because the lines were down. I didn't hear anything for two weeks, it was a very harrowing experience. But thankfully some other members of my family were on email and I managed to find out that everyone close to me was safe. I still have a home in New Orleans and there was some damage to it so I had to return, and thankfully they (the Federation) allowed me two weeks off to fix up the property.
FIBA: How did the Qatar opportunity come about?
Joey Stiebing: I got fired as coach at New Orleans University. I'd been hired by the Athletic Director but he retired after my third year and a new guy came in. We were doing great and I won a regional Coach of the Year award, but we didn't get in with each other and I left. It was a personal clash rather than professional. My agent called me shortly afterwards and asked about coaching overseas. I said I'd think about it and he said he'd call back in a year. He did, and I'd decided I wanted to get back into coaching. The Qatar position was available and they were looking for (NCAA) Division I coaches, so I talked to them about it and two months later I started (in January 2003).
FIBA: What did you do in the meantime?
Joey Stiebing: I worked in the private sector for a financial services company. I enjoyed it but I didn't love it. If I wasn't coaching now I'd like to do something in real estate, not being an agent but renting property and dealing in real estate investment.
FIBA: Did that period away from basketball make you appreciate being a coach more?
Joey Stiebing: In a way, it was the best thing that happened to me. At College level you're going non-stop for 11 months of the year, working from 8am to 10pm some nights and at some point you need a break. The time away gave me a chance to realise what I'm good at, which is coaching. My confidence came back and I had the motivation and energy to come back and coach again.
PA International
Having spent many years as a coach in the NCAA's Division I, Stiebing, who hails from New Orleans, took a year out of basketball.
But the offer of the Qatar job was too good an offer to turn down and Stiebing has not looked back since.
He has helped shape Qatar into a major player in Asia, and despite being affected by the New Orleans flooding last year, he is set to lead Qatar against the world's finest in Japan.
PA Sport spoke to Stiebing on behalf of FIBA.com about the challenge of helping Qatar establish themselves on the world stage.
FIBA: Many congratulations on leading Qatar into the FIBA World Championship 2006 for the first time in the country's history. Has it sunk in that you will be competing against great teams like the United States, Greece, and Argentina in Japan?
Joey Stiebing: It's sunk in a little bit. We know we'll be up against teams much better than us, but that's why you play the game - to accept the challenge and see how much improvement you can make. I can tell you the players have certainly accepted that challenge.
FIBA: What were your expectations before the FIBA Asia Championship (in Qatar last September) and did hosting the event give you a major advantage?
Joey Stiebing: We have a great record at home, I think it's 19-2, so I knew home-court advantage would be important for us, and we won every game by about 20 points until the semi-finals, when we were beaten by Lebanon.
We knew that we could have challenged China in the final and given them a run for their money so I think it was a good opportuntity wasted.
I must give credit to Lebanon but our decision making and shot selection was bad and it cost us.
For that game Lebanon actually had lots of fans there, even more than us, so in the end, home advantage didn't count.
FIBA: Everyone wants to know about Qatar's players. Who have been the leaders in your team, the players who have meant the most in terms of qualifying?
Joey Stiebing: We're lucky in that we don't have a dominant player where one player scores 20 points every game. We have five or six players capable of scoring 20 points and, usually, its one of them that steps up and does it.
But we do have one or two players that are really doing well for us. Daoud Mousa is one of them, but there's also Khalid Sulliman and Erfan Ali Saeed, and hopefully, we can pick up a player or two before August that will help even more.
FIBA: Will being an unknown to most of your opponents work to Qatar's advantage in the FIBA World Championship?
Joey Stiebing: China, Japan and Lebanon know us well because we play each other so often but most teams are so well coached and will scout you, so we won't be able to get anything by them or pull the wool over their eyes.
FIBA: What is your main aim going into the FIBA World Championship?
Joey Stiebing: I've not talked about it yet with the team yet but I think we can think get out of our pool. That is my aim, to make it into the last 16, and I think we have a legitimate chance to do that. We've got to play to the best of our abilities, but we're not going there just for the experience. We're not going with that attitude at all.
FIBA: How are your preparations going at this stage?
Joey Stiebing: We're taking a bit of a break at the moment before we get cranked up for the World Championship. We'll get together again on February 15 and start practising two or three times a week. Then we're trying to arrange two or three friendlies for the end of March, start of April, against some European clubs or national teams. On June 15 we'll begin a training camp in Slovenia and maybe have some more games there, before going to Los Angeles or Las Vegas to play in a tournament in July. Also in July, we might play in the Jones Cup and the Stankovic Cup. Then in August we'll have our final training in Jordan before going to Japan.
FIBA: This is an important year for Qatar, but what about the future? Are you optimistic that regardless of what happens in Japan, Qatar are an emerging force in Asia or is there not much talent in the pipeline?
Joey Stiebing: The team is on the rise. We finished third in the Asian Games for the first time in 2003 and we followed that up with another third, and we could have done even better.
We've also won other tournaments, like the FIBA Asia Stankovic Cup (November 2004), the Gulf Cup (December 2004), and the West Asian Games (December 2005), and I feel they've the chance to get even better.
The players have quality and they're willing to learn so there's no reason why Qatar can't continue to be succesful.
FIBA: Why do you think Qatar have now developed into one of Asia's strongest nations over recent years?
There's great administration from Rashid Abdula (asst. general secretary and head team manager) and Sheikh Sauod (president of the Basketball Federation of Qatar and president of FIBA Asia). They've allowed us to arrange many training camps to help us try to get better. They've given us the opportunity to compete, and other teams in the region can't do that. It's difficult to get support like that and when you get it, it feels like winning the lottery. The players are willing to learn and get better, it's well organised from top to bottom, and that has only increased our chances of success.
FIBA: How important is it for Asia to be hosting its first FIBA World Championship for Men since 1978?
Joey Stiebing: It's been hosted in the Phillipines before, and other events have been in China, but to go to a small country like Japan for the first time says a lot about how basketball is growing in this part of the world. If basketball is to get bigger and better in this region then it needs to host these events and let people see how exciting the game is. It will only help to raise awareness and promote basketball in our part of the world.
FIBA: Were you surprised that FIBA decided to take one of their major events to the Far East, instead of staging the competition in a country where basketball is firmly entrenched?
Joey Stiebing: I wouldn't say I was surprised. I think it's good for the game that FIBA puts these events in different parts of the world, like they did with the Under-21 Championship in Argentina. I also think its good from a cultural standpoint that players are able to see and play in different parts of the world.
FIBA: What does it mean to be coaching in a prestigious event like the FIBA World Championship?
Joey Stiebing: It's a great honour. It wasn't until I arrived in Qatar that I found out how big an event the World Championship is for teams all over the world, and it's great to test myself against some of the best coaches in world basketball.
FIBA: Where did you discover the game and when did you begin coaching?
Joey Stiebing: I started playing American football because it's huge in the region I come from (Louisiana), but when I was about nine years old I played my first game of basketball and I fell in love with the game straight away. I played it right through High School, but I didn't play at College because I was wasn't quite good enough. But I worked with Dale Brown (head coach at Louisiana State University), who coached players like Shaquille O'Neal and Chris Jackson, and I learned a great deal from him about coaching. I then coached at High School for five years and in College for 11 years, and I've now been coaching in Qatar for the last three years.
FIBA: Were you affected by the flooding catastrophe?
Joey Stiebing: I was in Qatar at the time. I have four daughters but I am divorced so they are back at home. I was trying to call but couldn't get through because the lines were down. I didn't hear anything for two weeks, it was a very harrowing experience. But thankfully some other members of my family were on email and I managed to find out that everyone close to me was safe. I still have a home in New Orleans and there was some damage to it so I had to return, and thankfully they (the Federation) allowed me two weeks off to fix up the property.
FIBA: How did the Qatar opportunity come about?
Joey Stiebing: I got fired as coach at New Orleans University. I'd been hired by the Athletic Director but he retired after my third year and a new guy came in. We were doing great and I won a regional Coach of the Year award, but we didn't get in with each other and I left. It was a personal clash rather than professional. My agent called me shortly afterwards and asked about coaching overseas. I said I'd think about it and he said he'd call back in a year. He did, and I'd decided I wanted to get back into coaching. The Qatar position was available and they were looking for (NCAA) Division I coaches, so I talked to them about it and two months later I started (in January 2003).
FIBA: What did you do in the meantime?
Joey Stiebing: I worked in the private sector for a financial services company. I enjoyed it but I didn't love it. If I wasn't coaching now I'd like to do something in real estate, not being an agent but renting property and dealing in real estate investment.
FIBA: Did that period away from basketball make you appreciate being a coach more?
Joey Stiebing: In a way, it was the best thing that happened to me. At College level you're going non-stop for 11 months of the year, working from 8am to 10pm some nights and at some point you need a break. The time away gave me a chance to realise what I'm good at, which is coaching. My confidence came back and I had the motivation and energy to come back and coach again.
PA International