Chinese men's 3x3 basketball players train on Friday at Chongming Sports Training Center in Shanghai. Photo: Yu Xi/GT

The Chinese men's national 3x3 basketball team held a session on Friday to show the intensified training results in the first stage, as well as to enhance practical experiences for some young players at Chongming Sports Training Center in Shanghai, aiming for preparation for upcoming events including the FIBA 3x3 Asia Cup, which will take place from March 29 to April 2 in Singapore.

The team has organized intensified training from January 28 to February 15 to systematically prepare for the competitions including the Asia Cup, the 2023 FIBA World Cup and other challenging competitions to earn qualification for the 2024 Paris Olympic Games. The previous selection training camp held from January 7 to 17 selected a batch of qualified players to participate in the following training.

"Pay attention to the defense!" "Good shot!" "Go!" The basketball gym in Shanghai's training base was in full swing on Friday, with many young basketball players taking part. A good shot won the team members' applause and encouragement.

"We will follow the team's arrangement in the next step and aim to gain more experience from more practical competition," basketball player Yan Peng told the Global Times on Friday. Yan started to play 3x3 basketball in 2017 and he believes that more training and competitions abroad will make people get to know 3x3 basketball better.

Yan has taken part in many international competitions. "We all would like to practice on a higher stage and face higher-ranking teams," Yan said.

Chinese men's national 3x3 basketball team leader Chai Wensheng felt quite satisfied as he saw all the players in the training put high demands on themselves and cherish this training opportunity a lot. "The cooperation between coaches and players makes me feel that they have improved a lot in terms of mental outlook," Chai said during a group interview on Friday in the training base.

Also, through this period of training, their technique has improved a lot, partly because foreign coaches have helped them to grasp chances in targeted practice, Chai said.

The team's head coach Wang Zhanyu said that after the Tokyo Olympic Games, 3x3 basketball is becoming more innovative. "We should gain experience and develop quickly, and try our best to do well in the preparation for the upcoming competitions this year," Wang said on Friday.

Another national 3x3 basketball player Guo Hanyu also said on Friday that this was the largest-scale and most intense training he had ever experienced.

China started its first professional league for 3x3 basketball in August 2022 in Zhangjiagang, East China's Jiangsu Province, aiming to promote the sport across the country. Yao Ming, president of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA), spoke at the opening ceremony to promote the event.