Toroman picks Iran over China

Serbian coach Rajko Toroman said Iran, not China, is the team to beat next month in the FIBA-Asia Championship in Wuhan, China.

"They’re amazingly strong," said the Smart-Gilas Pilipinas mentor Serbian mentor Rajko Toroman, who once coached the Iranians that won the FIBA-Asia title in 2007 in Tokushima, Japan that earned them an Olympic slot for the first time in 2008 Beijing Games.

Iran boasts of an almost intact lineup led by Hamed Haddadi, the 7-foot-2 center who played three seasons for the Memphis Grizzlies.

In the preliminary rounds of FIBA-Asia, Iran will play in Group B with Qatar, Uzbekistan and Chinese Taipei, while Smart-Gilas is in Group D with the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and China. In Group A are Lebanon, India, Malaysia and Korea while in Group C are Japan, Indonesia, Syria and Jordan.

In the previous William R. Jones Cup in Taipei, Smart-Gilas stunned Iran (73-59) with the 26-year-old Haddadi not in his usual game shape after a long layoff, but Iran avenged that setback with a 78-59 win in the semifinals.

Haddadi collected 36 points and eight rebounds with five shot blocks against the Philippines, and followed it up with a 35-point, 18-rebound performance in a 66-59 victory against South Korea in the Finals.

However, Toroman said that Iran will be a different team in Wuhan as compared in the Jones Cup, where they missed the services of injured forward Samad Nikkhah Bahrami and guard Hamed Afagh, while point guard Mahdi Kamrani played sparingly due to a knee injury.

"Except for Haddadi, Iran was more of a defensive team in the Jones Cup," Toroman said. "But their strength will be more on offense with the entry of Samad and Afagh. I think they’ll play less on Hamed, who is spectacular in the Jones Cup."

Waylon Galvez, Manila Bulletin