Can Korea return to prominence at Asia Cup 2017?
SEOUL (FIBA Asia Cup 2017) - After a dismal sixth place finish two years ago, Korea are hoping for a return to being one of the continent's traditional powers at the Asia Cup 2017.
SEOUL (FIBA Asia Cup 2017) - After a dismal sixth place finish two years ago, Korea are hoping for a return to being one of the continent's traditional powers at the Asia Cup 2017.
Korea have a colorful history in Asia basketball. They are, in fact, the winningest country in terms of total medals won. The East Asian side has finished on the podium a total of 24 times in 28 editions of the Asia's biggest continental tournament. That haul includes 11 times 3rd place, 11 times 2nd place and twice champions.
Entering the Asia Cup 2017, though, Korea are coming from a different context. They had a good showing in last year's Asia Challenge, finishing 2nd place, but with a stronger cast of opponents this year, coach Hur Jae knows the Asia Cup will be much much tougher, especially with a roster devoid of so many of the country's icons.
| Korea 12-Man Roster for FIBA Asia Cup 2017 | |||
| Choi JunYong | Heo Ung | Jeon JunBeom | Kim JongKyu |
| Kim SunHyung | Lee JongHyun | Lee JungHyun | Lee SeungHyun |
| Lim DongSeop | Oh SeKeun | Park ChanHee | Yang HongSeok |
No Yang DongGeun, no Cho SungMin, no Kim TaeSul and no Moon brothers. This is a Korean team that is still in a state of transition and still in search of their identity. They were already in the midst of that two years ago in Changsha-Hunan, and now we'll see if considerable progress has been made.
One promising element of this squad is the return of veteran big man Oh SeKeun to the fold. Oh debuted for the national team in 2009 and last played at the Asia Cup in 2011. He has been Korea's best big man for the past five years or so, but he always seems sidelined when it comes to international play. His return is a clear signal that Korea aren't scrimping on talent or experience this year.
Much of the production, however, will probably come from their backcourt, which will be spearheaded by Kim SunHyung, Lee JungHyun, Park ChanHee and Heo Ung. Those are four interchangeable parts who can light up the scoreboard in the blink of an eye. Patrolling the paint alongside Oh will be twin towers Lee JongHyun and Kim JongKyu together with sharpshooting power forward Lee SeungHyun.
If coach Hur can squeeze out every ounce of talent and grit from this mix of KBL stars, they should easily make it to the Quarter-Finals and maybe even beyond.
FIBA