Hong Kong’s Duncan Reid. –FIBA.BASKETBALL
MANILA, Philippines — The Bay Area Dragons are set to parade long-time Hong Kong national player Duncan Reid in their upcoming stint in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup in October.
The Brian Goorjian-coached squad announced their line-up on Thursday for the midseason tournament of the PBA and the coming East Asia Super League (EASL).
The 6-foot-9 Reid, arguably the best player in Hong Kong SAR, is set to bring his experience against the Filipino cagers and powerhouse Asian teams as a five-time Hong Kong A1 Division champion and a campaigner in the 2013 FIBA Asia Men’s Championship.
The Dragons are fielding a tall team also composed of 7-foot-5 Liu Chuanxing of the Chinese national team with youth squad member and 3×3 player Zhang Zhiyuan, Kobey Lam of NCAA Division 1 school University of Charleston, former Hong Kong scoring champion Scotty Ewing, Song Jianhua, and Zheng Qilon.
“We’re building this team to be competitive right off the bat. Ultimately our goal is to win games and establish a strong culture that will allow the players to excel and sharpen their skills against the best competition the region has to offer,” said Goorjian, the six-time Australian NBL champion who led the Boomers to their first-ever Olympic medal in last year’s Tokyo Games.
Besides having a tall team, the Bay Area Dragons’ coaching staff is composed of world-caliber individuals as Goorjian and general manager Liu Quansheng has Bryan Colangelo, a former NBA executive, on their side.
“Adding Coach Goorjian was the first step in building a team that competes with the best. Now we’re working with top players from Greater China to deliver a product that Chinese fans everywhere can be proud of and continue to elevate the level of Chinese basketball,” said Quansheng.
Bay Area will add two more imports with NBA or top European league experience as well as one Asian reinforcement.
Last March, the PBA and Bay Area Dragons announced that the club will be the first guest team in the Commissioner’s Cup after nearly two decades.