ssc_marcomms posted on January 05, 2012 21:39
When 16 year old Delvin Goh made it to the news, many were surprised. The 2.03m tall Unity Secondary School student will be towering over most of his teammates and opponents in this year's Basketball League (ABL), which is set to kick off on 15 January 2012 against the Indonesian Warriors at the Singapore Indoor Stadium.
Delvin has landed a seven-month contract for one of eight coveted local slots with the Slingers - Singapore's first and only professional basketball outfit.
'Every young basketballer's dream in Singapore is to play for the Slingers,' he said to the local media before a training session. 'I still can't believe I'll be playing professional basketball. Earlier this year, I was just competing at the national schools.'
Five other local boys have snagged professional contracts with the Singapore Slingers for the upcoming season.
Ng Hanbin, 22 and Steven Khoo, 26, join the trio of Desmond Oh, 25, Wong Wei Long, 23, and Lim Shengyu, 21, who were first confirmed in November.
The inclusion of Delvin Goh marks a remarkable journey from school athlete to professional ranks. Not only did he go to the SEA Games as part of the Singapore national squad, he will also be the youngest professional in the ABL.
Desmond Oh, Wong Wei Long and Steven Khoo are entering their third ABL season while Shengyu and Hanbin made their Slinger debuts in 2011.
There are two remaining local spots on the roster. Centre Pathman Matialakan, who was in the Slinger squad for the first two seasons, has not been confirmed.
The Slingers have also signed up American imports Donald Little and Louis Graham while Filipino Donald Dulay will fill one of their two ASEAN slots. The Slingers are still in negotiation with another ASEAN player.
Each ABL team can have up to three international and two ASEAN imports but Slingers general manager Michael Johnson confirmed that he will stick with just four imports to ensure that one local will always be in the starting five.
The Slingers have been hard at work preparing for the upcoming season. They came in third at a charity tournament in Bangkok last month. Competing in the same tournament are teams such as AirAsia Philippine Patriots, Indonesia Warriors, Saigon Heat and San Miguel Beermen.
Three new teams are joining the ABL in 2012 — Saigon Heat, Bangkok Cobras and San Miguel Beermen. The Brunei Barracudas pulled out after two seasons but the Malaysia Dragons (formerly known as KL Dragons), Philippine Patriots, Indonesia Warriors (formerly Satria Muda BritAma) and defending champions Thailand Slammers are back in action.
To find out more about the Slingers and their upcoming matches at home, visit http://www.singaporeslingers.com/. ABL tickets can be bought through the Slinger's website or at any SISTIC outlets.