Taiwan Basketball Association Talks With Atino for Months, but Second Naturalized Player Plan Falls Through

Taiwan’s hopes of adding a second naturalized player to its Asian Games men’s basketball team have ended after months of talks with William Artino.

Basketball Association deputy secretary-general Chang Cheng-chung said discussions with Artino began in June and continued until roughly two weeks before the announcement. Artino ultimately signed with a Japanese team, which did not release him for the tournament. Chang said the association continued communicating closely with Artino’s agent, but the two sides could not reach an agreement.

The men’s 5-on-5 roster for the Nagoya Asian Games also changed because of injuries. Liu Cheng withdrew and was replaced by Chen Kuan-chuan, a center for the Taipei Taishin Mars. Abass was confirmed last week to be unavailable because of injury, with Taoyuan Pauian Pilots center Tan Chieh-lung taking his place. Chang said coaches assessed the changes and the team’s selection committee approved the final list.

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I know everyone is very concerned about his situation, but he ultimately signed with a Japanese team, and the Japanese team would not release him.

Song Hsin-hsiao, who was included in the 18-man squad, could not enter the 12-man roster because he must report for military service on Sept. 7.

Chang also announced that 17-year-old Taiwanese-American player Chang Chiao-hsuan received her passport on Aug. 26. She is now eligible for the U18 Women’s Asian Cup, which will be led by Chien Wei-juan.

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We continued communicating very closely with his agent, and we were still discussing whether he could go until about two weeks ago, but the discussions ultimately did not succeed.