2023 East Asia Super League

The 2023 East Asia Super League will be the fourth overall and first regular season of the East Asia Super League, an international basketball club competition involving teams from domestic leagues in Japan, South Korea, Philippines and Taiwan, as well as a franchise team representing Greater China.[1][2]

2023 EASL season
LeagueEast Asia Super League
SportBasketball
DurationOctober 2023 – TBA
Number of teams8

Originally set to be held from 12 October 2022 to February 2023 under a in home and away format and a Final Four knockout stage,[3] the start of the EASL regular season was postponed to October 2023.[4][5]

The 2023 EASL Champions Week was organized in March as a pre-season tournament.[5]

Team allocation

Four leagues are represented for the 2023 EASL. The champions and runners-up of the Japan B.League and the Korean Basketball League,[6] as well as the champions of Taiwan's P. League+.[7] Hong Kong based Bay Area Dragons, a franchise team, will also participate. The league considers the P. League+ champions and Dragons as the representatives of the "Greater China".[3]

For the Philippines, the top two finishing teams of the 2022 PBA Philippine Cup qualified.[8] Initially, the Philippine allocation was unclear since the Philippine Basketball Association holds multiple conferences or tournaments across a single season. Among the possibilities were drawing of lots among the top four PBA teams, forming a selection team or entering the national team.[9][10]

Each team may have 12-men roster with two foreign players and an additional Asian player.[3]

LeagueCountry or regionBerths
Franchise team Hong Kong1
P. League+ Chinese Taipei1
B.League Japan2
Korean Basketball League South Korea2
Philippine Basketball Association Philippines2

Qualified teams
TeamDomestic league standing
Hong Kong Bay Area DragonsN/A (EASL franchise)
Chinese Taipei Taipei Fubon Braves2021–22 P. League+ champions
Japan Utsunomiya Brex2021–22 B.League champions
Japan Ryukyu Golden Kings2021–22 B.League runners-up
South Korea Seoul SK Knights2021–22 Korean Basketball League champions
South Korea Anyang KGC2021–22 Korean Basketball League runners-up
Philippines San Miguel Beermen2022 PBA Philippine Cup champions
Philippines TNT Tropang Giga2022 PBA Philippine Cup runners-up

Preparation

Original draw and format

The official draw for the 2022–23 EASL season was held on 28 June 2022 at the Shangri-La at the Fort, Manila in Taguig.[11][12]

The teams were drawn in two groups. A coin flipping mechanic were used; each champion in each domestic league were made to choose a coin side. The winner of the coin flip were placed on Group A while the other placed in Group B.[8][13] The identity of the Philippine representatives were yet to be determined at the time of the draw.

Each club was to play all the other clubs twice in home and away matches starting from 12 October 2022 to February 2023, with two EASL Group Stage games taking place every Wednesday night.[3] The final four were to be play in a venue in Metro Manila in the Philippines in March 2023.[14][3][15]

Group A
PosTeam
A1South Korea Anyang KGC
A2Chinese Taipei Taipei Fubon Braves
A3Japan Ryukyu Golden Kings
A4Philippines San Miguel Beermen
Group B
PosTeam
B1South Korea Seoul SK Knights
B2Japan Utsunomiya Brex
B3Hong Kong Bay Area Dragons
B4Philippines TNT Tropang Giga

Postponement

A few weeks before the supposed opening day, the league announced the cancellation of the home and away season, instead pushing through with a "Champions Week" that was initially announced to be held in Manila in early 2023. The COVID-19 pandemic was blamed for the cancellation.[16] Japan was later named the host country for this event.[17]

Champions Week
Main article: 2023 EASL Champions Week

In December, EASL announced that the Champions Week will be hosted by the qualifying Japanese teams, with the Utsunomiya Brex hosting the first six games, while the Ryukyu Golden Kings hosting the last six games at the Okinawa Arena.[17] The Champions Week would be tagged as a "special tournament" which would proceed the start of the inaugural season proper.[5]

Season

The 2023 East Asia Super League is set to begin around October 2023.[5]

References
  1. "EASL 2022–2023 Season". East Asia Super League. Retrieved 2 December 2021.
  2. Naredo, Camille (2 December 2021). "PBA wants to prove it is best in Asia through EASL". ABS-CBN News. Retrieved 2 December 2021.
  3. "East Asia Super League Debuts Season 1 of Premier Home-and-Away Pan-Regional League in 2022". East Asia Super League. Archived from the original on 22 February 2022. Retrieved 22 February 2022. The newly formed Bay Area Chun Yu Phoenixes and the championship team from Chinese Taipei's P.LEAGUE+, are the Greater China representatives.
  4. "East Asia Super League Prepares to Update Season 1 Format". East Asia Super League. 26 September 2022. Retrieved 6 October 2022.
  5. "EASL secures US$40m to fund expansion, CEO Bayer talks up 'bullish' outlook". South China Morning Post. 23 December 2022. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
  6. "Super League shakes up Asian hoops". China Daily. 2 December 2021. Retrieved 2 December 2021.
  7. "P.League+ winner to play in East Asian tournament – Taipei Times". Taipei Times. 2 December 2021. Retrieved 2 December 2021.
  8. Henson, Joaquin (16 June 2022). "EASL draw set in Manila". The Philippine Star. Retrieved 16 June 2022.
  9. "PBA won't rule out sending Gilas to maiden EASL tournament". Sports Interactive Network Philippines. 2 December 2021. Retrieved 2 December 2021.
  10. Henson, Joaquin (16 June 2022). "EASL draw set in Manila". The Philippine Star. Retrieved 16 June 2022.
  11. "EASL sets June 28 draw in Manila". Philippine Daily Inquirer. 21 June 2022. Retrieved 21 June 2022.
  12. "East Asia Super League unveils group draw for debut season". South China Morning Post. 28 June 2022. Retrieved 28 June 2022.
  13. Giongco, Mark (28 June 2022). "PBA Philippine Cup champion grouped with Taipei, Anyang, Ryukyu". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved 28 June 2022.
  14. "East Asia Super League – EASL 2022–2023 Season". easl.basketball. Retrieved 22 January 2022.
  15. Ramos, Gerry (17 August 2022). "Manila chosen as host for inaugural EASL Final Four". Spin.ph. Retrieved 17 August 2022.
  16. "'Champions Week' eyed as EASL cancels home-and-away season". Manila Bulletin. 26 September 2022. Retrieved 26 September 2022.
  17. "East Asia Super League to begin with Champions Week in Japan". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 8 December 2022.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.