Sharks head to Taiwan with an eye on the CBA

THE Shanghai Sharks is sharpening their teeth ahead of the new CBA season next month with two American players signed up to beef up the squad.

The team's head coach, Daniel Mauro Panaggio, said yesterday that they would try to "get better on everything."

The Sharks finished sixth in the 17-team Chinese Basketball Association league last season.

The team, which returned from Australia last week, will leave tonight for Taiwan where it will play 3 exhibition games.

It will be an opportunity for the players to gel in, especially the new ones.

"They are doing well but they are still learning the system here," Panaggio told reporters after a training lesson as the two American players, Elijah Milsap and D.J. White, practised free throws.

"The games in Taiwan will be a test for us," the American coach added.

White, a power forward who played for the Charlotte Bobcats last season in the NBA, said he felt good in the city and was "training pretty hard."

White has been with the team in Shanghai for about a week.

For the rest of the squad, staying fit and healthy before the season starts seemed to be the priority.

"The games (in Taiwan) will help me stay fit," said Sharks captain Liu Wei.

"And of course, I'd like to talk to the new guys more so that they can fir in better with the team," he added.

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