Senior center Jordan Bachynski said it’s often a challenge for ASU men’s basketball teammates to interact with one another because everyone is constantly on their phones.
Fortunately, for Bachynski and the rest of the team, they will have little distractions for the next 10 days as the Sun Devils left Tempe Thursday for their first-ever trip to China.
Representing the Pac-12 in the conference’s annual Globalization Initiative, the Sun Devils join athletic director Steve Patterson and other University officials for an exhibition tour and academic partnership with several Chinese universities.
ASU will play Tsinghua University in Beijing on Monday and have two meetings against CBA pro team Fujian SBS — one on Aug. 16 in Zhaoqing and another on Aug. 18 in Nanning. The team returns to Tempe on Aug. 19.
Coach Herb Sendek said he is excited for the long trip and thinks it will boost team chemistry. The team is scheduled to tour some of the nation’s great landmarks, like the Great Wall of China, and will not have much wireless reception during the trip.
“It’s going to give us an opportunity to come together, to bond, (to) spend great time together and (to) play some ball along the way,” Sendek said. “We’re tremendously blessed and honored for the opportunity.”
Traveling overseas to play basketball isn’t new for some of the players, like redshirt sophomore guard Jahii Carson, who played in Latvia in 2011 for the USA Basketball’s under 19 team.
Bachynski toured China and traveled to Russia this summer with the Canadian National Developmental Team.
Despite the games being labeled as exhibitions, Carson said he has no interest in losing. The 2012-13 Pac-12 Co-Freshman of the Year is viewing this as an early challenge for a team that narrowly missed the NCAA Tournament last season.
“We got to go over there and bring our top competition because if not, guys tend to be lackadaisical and that’s where we lose,” Carson said. “We have to go out there and be ready and prepared because these guys are professionals.”
Carson suffers concussion
At the Adidas Nations basketball camp in Long Beach, Calif., over the weekend, Carson said he suffered “a minor concussion” from an elbow to the head while driving to the basket in a game.
Despite the injury, Carson said he should be ready for ASU’s first game on Monday.
“I don’t think it’s going to affect me too much,” Carson said. “We’re just going to try and settle down on the bus on the trip and get some rest and be ready to knock it out when we play.”
Over the summer, Carson was staying busy by attending some of the nation’s most prestigious camps and exposed himself to NBA scouts and general managers. He went to Las Vegas in July for the LeBron James Skills Academy and just returned from Adidas Nations before leaving to China.
Many scouts and analysts said Carson was a standout at both camps.
“I got great tips, great coaching, great competition and I think that I displayed my game great out there,” he said. “I thought I did very well and I thought I did everything to boost everything for me and my team.”
Reach the reporter at jnacion@asu.edu or follow him on Twitter @Josh_Nacion
