Philippines, 05 Jul 2025
  Home >> News

 


BOXERS

CURRENT CHAMPIONS 

FORMER CHAMPIONS   

RATINGS                       

NEWS           

FORUM        

FIGHT GALLERIES        

RING CARD GIRLS        


 
 
News  


Old, New Foreign Cagers Making a Difference As Pro League Enters Crucial Stage


PhilBoxing.com





The good news is the two most successful teams in the NBA 2024-25 season thus far are all-American or mostly composed of American starters.

The Cleveland Cavaliers, with a league-leading 48-10 slate, have a mostly all-American starting lineup starring Donovan Mitchell, Jarrett Allen, Evan Mobley, and Darius Garland, with Canadian-born Luguentz Dort as the only foreign major player.

Meanwhile, the Western Conference top team, the Oklahoma City Thunder (47-11), made up of starters Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Chet Holmgren, Jalen Williams, Jaylin Williams, and Isaiah Joe, are essentially all-American, although top reserve center Isaiah Hartenstein is German.

But fancied squads like the Los Angeles Lakers and even the Golden State Warriors have added foreign flavors to their starting units, particularly the Lakers, which have been experimenting with a blending of Americans (LeBron James, Austin Reaves, et al.) with a Slovenian (Luka Dončić) and a Japanese (Rui Hachimura) with a great measure of success. The Warriors have a seven-foot Dutch player, Quentin Post, playing major minutes and contributing.

Post is just one of the latest foreign players fast becoming a household name in the world's premier professional basketball league. It has indeed long been a 180-degree turn in international caging where, before, American players were the most sought-after reinforcements in myriad leagues from Europe to the Middle East to Asia; now, it is players from these regions who have been flocking to America and making a difference for the various state squads.

From a handful that included Rik Smits, Dikembe Mutombo, Detlef Schrempf, and Toni Kukoč in the 1980s, followed by a gaggle that had Argentine Olympic standouts Manu Ginóbili and Luis Scola, it became an open floodgate with the likes of Yao Ming and Dirk Nowitzki leading the deluge of foreign players.

Foreign-born and raised players, with or without US college league eligibility, like Giannis Antetokounmpo, Joel Embiid (who has since acquired US citizenship), Rudy Gobert, and Nikola Jokić, have lately become stars and most important cogs in their respective teams.

Now it is the likes of Frenchman Victor Wembanyama and Egyptian Alperen Şengün who are making heads turn, although between the two, it is Şengün, playing for the Houston Rockets, who has the bigger chance for more exposure through the postseason playoffs than Wembanyama, who is with the struggling San Antonio Spurs. Then we have the Wagner brothers, Moritz and Franz, who are mesmerizing for the Orlando Magic.

We can expect Giannis (Milwaukee Bucks), Embiid (Philadelphia 76ers), Gobert (Minnesota Timberwolves), and Jokić (Denver Nuggets) to lead the charge for their respective teams for spots in the playoffs and in the postseason. Likewise with Kristaps Porziņģis for defending champion Boston Celtics, together with Dominican Al Horford and Portuguese Neemias Queta.

Meanwhile, silently but effectively, the pairs of Ivica Zubac and Bogdan Bogdanović for the LA Clippers and twin towers Domantas Sabonis and Jonas Valančiūnas for the Sacramento Kings are making their difference.

This early, get used to hearing and reading about these eerie, mostly tongue-twisting names, as they will figure prominently as the pro league enters its crucial stages in the few months to come.

The author Teodoro Medina Reynoso is a veteran boxing radio talk show host living in the Philippines. He can be reached at teddyreynoso@yahoo.com and by phone 09215309477.


Click here to view a list of other articles written by Teodoro Medina Reynoso.


Recent PhilBoxing.com In-House articles:

  • WEIGHTS FROM MANCHESTER: CATTERALL - 146.5 LBS., EUBANK - 146.5 LBS.
    , Sat, 05 Jul 2025
  • Vincent Astrolabio in LA training alongside Manny Pacquiao
    By Ace Freeman, , Sat, 05 Jul 2025
  • Jason Sanchez Upsets Previously Undefeated Julian Gonzalez in Philly
    , Sat, 05 Jul 2025
  • Meatball Launches Boxing Career With Matchroom
    , Sat, 05 Jul 2025
  • The Queens of Philippine Boxing are Training in Cebu
    By Carlos Costa, , Fri, 04 Jul 2025
  • Raising the Game: Jean Henri Lhuillier’s Unmatched Impact on Philippine Tennis
    By Marlon Bernardino, , Fri, 04 Jul 2025
  • GM Eugene Torre to grace the Asenso Ozamis Open Chess Tournament
    By Marlon Bernardino, , Fri, 04 Jul 2025
  • The Second Rise of Jesse Espinas
    By Carlos Costa, , Fri, 04 Jul 2025
  • Boxing Golden Age Comparison - Philippines and Japan
    By Teodoro Medina Reynoso, , Fri, 04 Jul 2025
  • Kittipong, Magdalena, Kim, Kritiphak Claim Wins in Brico Santig's Show in Bangkok
    By Carlos Costa, , Fri, 04 Jul 2025
  • Kremlev, Crawford, Fury Launch IBA's Golden Era of International Boxing
    , Fri, 04 Jul 2025
  • International Master Angelo Young stays on course for GM norm
    By Marlon Bernardino, , Fri, 04 Jul 2025
  • Robby Gonzales and Yoseline Perez Progress to Semifinals at World Boxing Cup: Astana 2025
    , Fri, 04 Jul 2025
  • Fireworks Ahead: Magsayo vs Mata in Prelims of Pacquiao vs Barrios
    By Carlos Costa, , Thu, 03 Jul 2025
  • Japan's Boxing Golden Age Remains Limited to the Lower Weights
    By Teodoro Medina Reynoso, , Thu, 03 Jul 2025
  • No issues with fight ref
    By Joaquin Henson, , Thu, 03 Jul 2025
  • Round 12 with Mauricio Sulaimàn: Grand Muay Thai event in Verona
    By Mauricio Sulaimán, , Thu, 03 Jul 2025
  • Morelle McCane and Rene Camacho Advance to Quarterfinals of World Boxing Cup: Astana 2025
    , Thu, 03 Jul 2025
  • 3 Division World Champion & Hall of Famer Marco Antonio Barrera Confirmed for Eighth Annual Box Fan Expo, During Mexican Independence Day Weekend, Saturday September 13, in Las Vegas
    , Thu, 03 Jul 2025
  • ESPN Original Series The Fight Life Returns for Season Two on July 7
    , Wed, 02 Jul 2025
  • TOP-RATED LIGHTWEIGHT KO ARTIST ARMANDO MARTINEZ RABI RETURNS
    , Wed, 02 Jul 2025
  • Amazing Muay Thai WBC Festival 2025
    , Wed, 02 Jul 2025
  • Borromeo Leads Winners of the Philippine Speedcubing Championships
    By Marlon Bernardino, , Wed, 02 Jul 2025
  • What If Pacquiao Defeats Barrios?
    By Ralph Rimpell, , Wed, 02 Jul 2025
  • Team USA Earns Three Wins on Day Two of World Boxing Cup: Astana 2025
    , Wed, 02 Jul 2025




  •  



     
    PhilBoxing.com has been created to support every aspiring
    Filipino boxer and the Philippine boxing scene in general.
    Please send comments to feedback@philboxing.com


    PRIVATE POLICY | LEGAL DISCLAIMER
    developed and maintained by dong secuya
    © 2025 philboxing.com.