Yee Chun Leong
BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN
Pictures: Courtesy of Thailand Basketball League
THE Thailand Basketball Professional Association today announced that the remainder of the Thailand Basketball Super League has been cancelled due to COVID-19.
However, that didn’t stop the trio of Brunei Pegasus local players Muhd Masqudi Hj Hussin, Marcus Lim and Gideon Fong from gaining new found experience at the competition.
Despite losing all six games that they contested in, they felt they had picked up plenty along the way.
“I came in the tournament as a rookie, which meant that my on court experience was limited,” said Masduqi in an interview with BruSports News when contacted.
“However, just being present to observe professionals at work definitely showed the holes in my game and practices.
“On non training days, i frequented one of the local parks (Benchasiri) for pick up basketball and the tenacity to win from the regulars never fail to inspire,” added the forward, who clocked a over 51 minutes in the competition registering a total of seven rebounds, one block and one steal.
When asked about the opportunity to play at the Nimibutr Stadium, Masduqi replied: “Playing at the stadium was no big of a deal. The house was rarely filled but having it televised felt surreal and i appreciated that I’m able to review the games later on in the day.
“The professionals I’ve observed were models of what to do and what not to do in both basketball and life.
“In practical sense, they showed me how they trained; how they analysed the game, how to practice and even how to think better,” he added.
“What I learnt most were life lessons. From humble environments and beginnings, ultimately, my biggest takeaway from meeting and competing with the other players; was the importance of team solidarity; and how fundamental that was to be winners,” continued Masduqi.
Meanwhile, Lim knows exactly what he has to continue working on.
“I gained a lot of experience playing with professionals athletes. The imports guided us and taught us from their experience,” said Lim, who knocked down three treys in the competition.
“It was a different atmosphere giving a different experience playing at the Nimibutr stadium and what I need to do now is gain more confidence,” he added.
Fong, who notched a total of six assists in the tournament, felt that it was quite an experience to be away from home for a month.
“A month of being homesick was definitely an experience,” said Fong.
“Playing alongside the import players have definitely got my assists going as they can out score our opponents.
“The advice that I received is to shoot more and to have more confidence when it comes to shooting the ball,” he concluded.
