Slingers’ Graham soars up for a lay up
The Singapore Slingers were in Bangkok, Thailand last week alongside AirAsia ASEAN Basketball League (or AirAsia ABL) rivals AirAsia Philippine Patriots, Indonesia Warriors, Saigon Heat and San Miguel Beermen for the To Be Number One Basketball Challenge last week to show their support in helping to raise funds for flood victims in Thailand.
The charity tournament, which was held from the 15th to the 18th of December at the Nimibutr Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand was organized by the Basketball Sport Association of Thailand (or BSAT) and while the games were free to attend, a donation box was passed around during the games for attendees to make their contributions.
The Slingers had a good start to the tournament, winning their first match-up against the Indonesia Warriors by a 73-66 margin, but were unlucky in their next game and lost against the AirAsia ABL newcomers the San Miguel Beermen by just ten points, eliminating them from the championship finals.
All was not lost however, and the Slingers put in a solid performance against the host team, To Be Number One Thailand, coming from behind after the second quarter with a 16-6 run in six minutes, earning them third spot in the tournament. The Slingers had an incredible second half, with imports Don Dulay and Louis Graham contributing a combined 30 points, outscoring the entire host team which only managed a combined 28 points in the entire half.
The Slingers are looking like a formidable opponent going into the AirAsia ABL’s third season, the team already gelling really well together and moving the ball around very smoothly throughout the tournament. Having been in the play-offs for the last two seasons, it is looking like the Slingers could well be title contenders for the upcoming season.
All in all, it was an interesting pre-season tournament for the AirAsia ABL teams that were involved and while it is yet unclear whether this tournament will be an indicator of how the AirAsia ABL’s third season will ultimately end up, what it did promise is that next season will be more exciting and far more competitive than ever before.
