By Koh Yizhe/Red Sports
“Local players will have to share the scoring responsiblity,” said ex-national basketballer Koh Meng Koon (left) who was a guest of the Red Crew for the game against Smart Gilas Pilipinas. (Photo © Les Tan/Red Sports)
After two matches of the Challenge Series, the Singapore Slingers face their toughest opponents yet - the legendary Barangay Ginebra Kings of the Phillipine Basketball Association (PBA).
The last time these two teams met, the 2008 version of the Singapore Slingers trounced their Filipino opponents 100-68. That squad was dominated by Australian basketballers and the imports Eric Sandrin (American-Korean) and Darren Ng (Australian-Chinese).
The local Singapore players also got a chance to show their stuff late in that match, with Hong Wei Jian, Desmond Oh, Tan Chin Hong, Steven Khoo and Pathman all on court in the final minutes and Wei Jian finishing with an emphatic dunk.
Plenty of changes have been made to that Slingers' side since then, of course. The ASEAN Basketball League calls for seven local players and five imports (two internationals and three ASEAN players).
Our Singapore boys though haven't been up to the scoring mark in the previous two pre-season games. Filipino Al Vergara was top scorer with 20 points in the first match against the Coca-Cola Tigers while American Kyle Jeffers bore much of the scoring responsibility with 20 points when the Slingers played Smart Gilas Philipinas.
How about the local basketballers?
Out of the eight Singaporean players, only Hong Wei Jian has made a note-worthy impact with his 12-point performance from each game. Pathman would be next in line with 19 points from two games, but the rest have yet to show what they can do.
Ex-national basketballer and former Slingers player Koh Meng Koon commented after Slingers' defeat to the Smart Gilas: "Right now, the scoring responsibilities are falling on Kyle Jeffers. The Slingers require one or two more locals to step up to score double digits. If Jeffers gets shut down, nobody else can get the points for the team."
Another troubled area which the Slingers will hope to sort out is their style of play. Against the quicker and larger Smart Gilas opponents, the Slingers struggled to find their rhythm. When they held the lead in the third quarter, the Slingers chose to play a fast-paced game which suited their opponents better, resulting in careless turnovers while attempting to extend the lead. The outcome was easy points for Smart Gilas on the break and an unimaginable 17 turnovers for the Slingers.
Although Wei Jian got the points, his five turnovers against Smart Gilas is a definite cause for concern.
"The Slingers' rebounding as well as three-point shooting was superior," explained Meng Koon. "So it is definitely the turnovers that killed the game for the Slingers. They will have to adopt their own style of play instead of following their opponents'. If they maintained possession and took things slow, the Slingers could have won the match."
But it isn't all bad news for the Slingers. American Michael LeBlanc will make his long awaited appearance against Ginebra Kings after he had to go back home due to a family emergency.
The Slingers will be looking to build on their performances so far in front of their home crowd, but it will no easy task against the runners-up of the Philippine Basketball Association.
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