On June 28, the Chinese Men’s Basketball team commences its exhibition match series with a home game against the Macao Black Bears at 7:30 pm in Suzhou. This marks Guo Shiqiang’s first public appearance as interim head coach. Key players such as Zhou Qi, Zhao Jiwei, Guo Ailun, Hu Jinqiu, and Zhao Rui are absent, leaving the spotlight on the young players born around the year 2000.
To prepare for this friendly, the Chinese team held closed-door tryouts, with a roster of 21 players. Guo Shiqiang experimented with five-on-five rotations, and players like Liao Santong and Cui Xiaolong impressed in a 35-point victory over the Macao Black Bears.
While there may be differences between closed tests and open matches, both serve similar purposes for the Chinese squad – assessing young players’ integration and determining if they can take on larger roles. Some core players will get opportunities, while less-established youngsters might seize their chance before overseas training camps, with the coaching staff and team leaders evaluating their potential for future plans. Injured players might also depart from the national team camp after the warm-up games.
The Macao Black Bears have several imports, but their true strength remains to be seen. Like China, they are also testing their lineup, giving all 16 registered players an opportunity. This public exhibition match is a significant evaluation chance for them, especially if they aspire to join domestic leagues. Their performance against China’s young-dominated roster will be intriguing.
As per the Chinese Basketball Association’s official social media, the selection criteria for the national team training focused on evaluating young talents, fulfilling foreign competition and training tasks, and fostering a mentorship culture with an eye on the long-term goal of the 2027 World Cup and the 2028 Olympics.
After the Macao Black Bears, China will travel to Melbourne, Australia, for two exhibition games against the Australian national team in early July. They will then participate in the NBA Summer League in Sacramento from July 5 to 10, playing three games. Following that, they plan to go to Las Vegas for 3-5 more tune-up matches against G League teams and free agent squads before returning to China by the end of July.
>>”>For more predictions on this game, please click>>>
