Are they any unwritten etiquette rules to playing basketball here?
Seems very social and all that… How do they figure out who has court time? Theres like 5 billion people on the courts at night.
Like any other place, you have to call “Next”.
But over here, you have to ASK if you can call “Next”.
So basically you wait for a deadball, stop out on the court and ask them “Can I get next?” (or Can I get last game)
The difference between Taiwan and the States (Not sure about other parts of the world) is that when you call next in the States, you’ve got the last game. But here, they will literally tell you NO sometimes. Its rare, but I’ve actually had kids tell me No. At first, you’re just standing there like a retard wondering what just happened, but then they tell you. We have too many teams. Go play somewhere else…
I have quite a few foreign friends who play in local rec leagues. I know this because their pics are all over Facebook every Monday (the league takes many snapshots and tags everyone).
No one is ever happy with refs no matter where you are and whatever sport you are playing (my soccer friends bitch about them all the time) and from my understanding the international style of play in basketball is much softer than the American version.
The missionaries spent centuries coming here spreading Christianity and have made very few inroads, I am in doubt that whinging on a messageboard about soft fouls and who’s up next will solve anything.
[quote=“Deuce Dropper”]I have quite a few foreign friends who play in local rec leagues. I know this because their pics are all over Facebook every Monday (the league takes many snapshots and tags everyone).
No one is ever happy with refs no matter where you are and whatever sport you are playing (my soccer friends bitch about them all the time) and from my understanding the international style of play in basketball is much softer than the American version.
The missionaries spent centuries coming here spreading Christianity and have made very few inroads, I am in doubt that whinging on a messageboard about soft fouls and who’s up next will solve anything.[/quote]
Much like everyone else who spends their days reading and posting in here, we are simply just venting…
I learned this trick from my local friends. When the game ends, all you have to do is get up and walk onto the court as if you have the next game. When the guys who really have next step on the court, you start arguing that YOU had the next game. You guys go back and forth for a few minutes and then finally, you say ok ok forget it, you can have this game. By participating in this little spectacle, now everyone waiting knows YOU have the next game after, even if you didn’t. People often lose track of who has next and they just wait to see if the guys that were before them have played or not. Taiwan trickery…
I have never done this, but I have seen this happen many times. And it works most of the time.
I learned this trick from my local friends. When the game ends, all you have to do is get up and walk onto the court as if you have the next game. When the guys who really have next step on the court, you start arguing that YOU had the next game. You guys go back and forth for a few minutes and then finally, you say ok ok forget it, you can have this game. By participating in this little spectacle, now everyone waiting knows YOU have the next game after, even if you didn’t. People often lose track of who has next and they just wait to see if the guys that were before them have played or not. Taiwan trickery…
I have never done this, but I have seen this happen many times. And it works most of the time.[/quote]
Yea, I know places where antics like that could get you killed back in the states… not going to even attempt that scam here as a guest of this country.
I learned this trick from my local friends. When the game ends, all you have to do is get up and walk onto the court as if you have the next game. When the guys who really have next step on the court, you start arguing that YOU had the next game. You guys go back and forth for a few minutes and then finally, you say ok ok forget it, you can have this game. By participating in this little spectacle, now everyone waiting knows YOU have the next game after, even if you didn’t. People often lose track of who has next and they just wait to see if the guys that were before them have played or not. Taiwan trickery…
I have never done this, but I have seen this happen many times. And it works most of the time.[/quote]
Yea, I know places where antics like that could get you killed back in the states… not going to even attempt that scam here as a guest of this country.[/quote]
For sure. Jussayin’ you better watch the games and keep track of who you’re waiting behind cuz it most definitely happens here.
Hey guys I just moved to Taipei and live pretty close to the adidas 101 courts. I was wondering if anyone knows where to get a decent basketball in that area. Thanks!
You can pick up decent outdoor composite leather balls at the nike store, but I wouldn’t bother bringing them to the courts. The locals, for some strange reason, prefer to use rubber balls like elementary school kids.
haha, ok thanks for the info
right up the street towards the university hospital in that area there is a sports store. Cant miss it.
hi guys!
I come back to Taipei in december for 5 months and i am looking for some guys to play with! i am 6foot6 so i need to play with some foreigners :s
i give you my mail: carmelo3389@hotmail.fr
thanks guys
[quote=“carmelo3389”]hi guys!
I come back to Taipei in december for 5 months and I am looking for some guys to play with! I am 6foot6 so I need to play with some foreigners :s
i give you my mail: carmelo3389@hotmail.fr
thanks guys[/quote]
Hahaha youre 6’6 so you need to play with some foreigners?
What are you saying??? Taiwanese people are short!!! 
You can usually find some good comp at Adidas101 or the courts under the Xinsheng freeway at Zhongxiao Xinsheng.
You can pick up decent outdoor composite leather balls at the nike store, but I wouldn’t bother bringing them to the courts. The locals, for some strange reason, prefer to use rubber balls like elementary school kids.[/quote]
Leather balls get chewed up quickly on the rough concrete. They’re made more for indoor use. The best balls for outdoor courts are (unfortunately) those premium rubber-type balls. The weight and bounce takes some getting used to but all in all it’s not a big deal.
Basketball is a great way to make local friends. I regularly show up alone in the neighborhood and get in easily on a 3-on-3 round. The guys are quite friendly and welcoming. If you’re looking for fun and exercise, head to smaller lit courts at night. (The Adidas court is OK but gets crowded. Some guys are there more to show off their new shorts and shoes than actually play ball.)
I enjoy the pickup games especially because of the “soft” rules. Everyone is just there to have fun so there’s no reason to play aggressively and cause injuries. Sometimes when there aren’t enough people, we’ll invite local middle schoolers to join. It’s pretty hilarious because in the States you’d never have a 30-year old and a 15-year old in the same game. Men would be way too competitive to play with “kids”. But playground ball here is more about shooting from 15-feet here than it is showing how awesome your skills are.
Basketball is arguably the most efficient way to socialize, exercise, and have fun in a safe environment in Taiwan. The fact that you can do it all w/o having to travel to the far corners of the city like you have to with sports like soccer, rugby, American football, etc…puts it at the top of my list of amateur sports on the island.