Seika, Kyungbock crowned champions as NBA Rising Stars Invitational finishes high
Seika, Kyungbock crowned champions (Image: NBA Rising Star Invitational) Image: NBA Rising Star InvitationalImage: NBA Rising Star InvitationalNBA Rising Star Invitational TimesofIndia.com IN SINGAPORE: There were hardly any seats left at the OCBC Arena when the boys’ final broke out on Sunday night.Spectators sang and cheered at every basket in the stands as NBA champions Jeremy Lin and Mitch Richmond, along with WNBA legend Lauren Jackson, watched two of Asia’s top collegiate teams battle for the title on the court. Six days earlier, Los Angeles Lakers forward Rui Hachimura opened the tournament by talking about how to inspire other players from Asia to dream of reaching the NBA.By the end of the week, the next generation took center stage.The second year of the NBA Rising Stars Invitational ended on Sunday with Japan’s Seika Girls High School and South Korea’s Kyungbock High School crowned champions in a competition featuring 24 boys and girls teams from across the Asia-Pacific region.
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Seika recovered from a sluggish opening quarter to beat Chinese Taipei’s Yangming High School 106-56 in the girls’ final, while Kyungbock produced another clinical display to defeat Japan’s Tottori Johoku High School 82-72 to lift the boys’ title after overcoming an early deficit.The medals may have gone to Japan and South Korea, but the biggest individual honors of the tournament reflected the breadth of talent on display across the region.Seika’s Buba Aisha Ezzine capped off a memorable week by being named the Girls’ Finals MVP after also earning Defensive Player of the Tournament honors, while Kyungbock guard Yoon Jiwon walked away with the Boys’ Finals MVP honor.The diversity of the tournament was also underlined by the all-tournament teams.Australia’s Boris Rosner (Berwick College), Japan’s Philemon Talmon (Tottori Johoku High School), China’s Wang Junzheng (Tsinghua University High School) and South Korea’s Yoon Jihoon and Yoon Jiwon (Kyungbock High School) featured in the boys’ first team.The girls’ selection included Ezzine and teammate Goto Honoka, alongside Hsu Yu-Shan (Yangming High School), Tiedore Puoch (Rowville Secondary College) and Yuan Zixi (Yali High School).The tournament offered a rare glimpse into the present – and perhaps the future – of basketball across Asia.From Australia’s physicality and Japanese discipline to South Korea’s relentless pressure game and China’s structured team play, each game became a lesson in the different basketball cultures emerging across the region.For India’s lone representative, The Velammal International School, the week ended without a win, but with something arguably more valuable: perspective.Former NBA Academy India player Kushal Singh perhaps captured it best. “We know other countries are better at basketball, so we have better competition to play against,” he told TimesofIndia.com earlier in the tournament.A willingness to learn seemed to define the week as much as the competition itself.Jeremy Lin, one of the biggest attractions on Finals Day, believes these moments matter far more than photos or autographs.“I think a big part of it is inspiration,” Lin told TimesofIndia.com.“Growing up, I didn’t really have an Asian player to look up to until Yao Ming came along. But Yao was very different from me; he was a center, while I was usually the shortest guy on the pitch.
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“So I hope I can inspire them, show them I’m here, appreciate what they can do, watch them play and give back to the sport of basketball. As they get older, hopefully they’ll continue to do that for the next generation.”Alongside the tournament were coaching clinics, referee development programs, community basketball activities and the Her Time To Play initiative, where Lauren Jackson spent time encouraging more girls to take up the sport beyond their school years.Earlier in the week, Jackson talked about one of the biggest challenges facing women’s sports: not getting girls to start playing, but making sure they continue long enough to become players, coaches and future leaders.However, the success of the tournament centered as much on what happened on the hardwood as in the stands, where attendances steadily increased throughout the week before culminating in a packed house in the final.
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“It was particularly encouraging to see a full house for the finals, reflecting the strong and growing interest in basketball,” a Sport Singapore spokesperson said after the event.“We hope the performances during the tournament have inspired the next generation of athletes to take up the sport and realize their potential.”Lin saw this enthusiasm as the region’s greatest strength.“When you think about basketball in the Asia-Pacific region, what gives you the most optimism?” was asked.“It’s always been a passion for me,” he replied.“When I see the incredible passion, I believe people will find a way to bring in the best coaches. They will find a way to build youth basketball from the ground up. I believe players, parents and governments will continue to invest in the sport.”
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“When the passion is there, I think everything else can follow. And that’s definitely what I feel when I’m here,” Lin added.