More import players in 1995 Kobatama<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The semi-professional national basketball league
\nKobatama plans to draft 22 more foreign players into the league
\nnext season to shape up the balance of power among participating
\nclubs.<\/p>\n
Chief of the league commission of the national basketball
\nassociation (Perbasi) Meliono Suwondo said on Saturday that each
\nof the 11 teams will have two imported players.<\/p>\n
"The lower ranked teams will have the privilege to choose
\nbefore the stronger ones," Meliono said, adding that such a
\nruling is expected to avoid one sided matches.<\/p>\n
"The problem is that each team's purchasing power is
\ndifferent," he said. If the 15 Americans and one Canadian that
\nare playing in this season extend their deal, there will be a
\ntotal of 38 imported players in the 1995 season.<\/p>\n
A Hong Kong based company, Spectrum, will again bring in the
\noverseas players for Perbasi.<\/p>\n
Meliono said Perbasi will set the limits for height and skill
\nof the foreign cagers at about a grade higher than local players.
\n"We want local talents to learn from the imported and more
\nexperienced players," said Meliono.<\/p>\n
He did not directly say that the international players have
\nprevailed over the competitions in progress but did admit that
\nhis Indonesian players "have difficulty matching their towering
\nrivals."<\/p>\n
Pelita Jaya coach Toto Sudarsono earlier expressed his
\ndisappointment over Perbasi having failed to meet their deadline
\nin setting acceptable quality standards for foreign players
\njoining the league.<\/p>\n
The government decided to allow imported players to join
\nbasketball and soccer leagues last year.<\/p>\n
Foreign cagers, most of them two meters high, led scoring in
\nalmost all 35 matches of the league's first leg that ended on
\nSaturday. They also dominated the selections of most valuable
\nplayers in every game.<\/p>\n
"Players brought from other Asian countries are in fact more
\nfeasible for this league," said Meliono. He added that Perbasi
\nhad earlier planned to bring in cagers from China and South Korea
\nbut the sponsoring companies refused.<\/p>\n
"We let each club hire any player it wants just for the sake
\nof sponsorship," said Meliono. The four-leg league, which started
\nlast Wednesday and will finish in December, cost the organizers
\nRp 250 million (US$115,300).<\/p>\n
On Saturday, Bima Sakti of Malang, East Java joined defending
\nchampion Aspac of Jakarta to seal the first leg unbeaten in their
\nthree matches.<\/p>\n
Canadian Scott Peterson led Bima Sakti, which lacked American
\nMorgan Wheat, to nail a come-from-behind 89-76 win over fellow
\nEast Javanese Petrogres of Gresik. Petrogres is entering the
\nsecond leg played in Surabaya at the end of this month with three
\nstraight losses. (amd)<\/p>",
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