KBL to allow two foreign players on court at a time

The Korean Basketball League (KBL) will see two foreign players on the court next season, but not for its entirety.

KBL officials, including commissioner Kim Young-ki and general managers from 10 teams, held a workshop in San Francisco from April 20 to 26 to discuss a new foreign player system for next season. Currently, teams can have two foreign players but can’t have them on the court at the same time.

The KBL initially wanted to allow foreigners to play at same time in the second and third quarter, but there was criticism that such a move would reduce the playing time of locals.

After the meeting, the KBL said that it has decided to keep the current system until each team has played one another three times. In subsequent games, however, it will adopt a new system that allows for two foreigners on the court at once. The changes will be confirmed next month following the board meeting, KBL said.

BY JOO KYUNG-DON [joo.kyungdon@joongang.co.kr]