Singapore Slingers CEO Bob Turner insists that the newly-formed ASEAN Basketball League will be a hit with the local crowd.

By Vincent Lai

Turner was present at the Slingers' third annual Captain's Rally to usher in the team's fourth season in the Lion City, and he said he was excited about the potential of the Southeast Asian competition.

"It's total enthusiasm, total excitement because, in the two years in the Australian League, it proved difficult to find relevance for the Singapore team," said the Slingers supremo. "Last year I think the Challenge Series proved that if we play Asian teams, it would be a lot better, especially if we have Singapore players on the team."

"Now you get the combination of the best of everything. It's a Singapore team and no longer an import team; we're playing historic rivals throughout ASEAN."

"And so now you look at it, you'd say 'this will work'," continued Turner. "The Singapore Indoor Stadium is the best venue in the competition; we intend to be one of the most competitive teams in the competition. We play Malaysia on the 11^th of October and we hope all of Singapore knows."

Asked why he was sure that the new tournament will work when the Australian National Basketball League failed to average a decent crowd at the Indoor Stadium, Turner stressed that regional rivalries will be key in pulling in the average consumer.

"I think it's intensity, for a start," added the Slingers CEO. "You go to any level for a sport around the world, whether it be high school, college, junior club, professional: When you get a country-on-country, a rival versus rival, you get intensity."

"And with Singapore, when you play Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Philippines and Brunei, there's rivalry."

"As for the standard of play, all the Singaporeans [on the team] can play basketball," stated Turner. "They struggled a little bit when they played some of the Australians simply because of height, but now when you play your regional peers, that's not much of an issue. So, you'll find that the Singapore player will handle himself exceptionally well."

"[Sheer size] is the only difference and looking at the talent I've seen, and I've played and coached all my life, I believe I can assess basketball talent fairly well, and I'm confident that the [ABL's] standard will be very good."