While the eyes of the basketball fans across the world began shifting towards the glitz and glamour of the All-Star Weekend, on Friday afternoon, FIBA conducted the draw ceremony for the 2022 edition of its Asia continental tournament.
Held in Jakarta, Indonesia - hosts of the tournament - the ceremony was streamed across multiple channels on social media including FIBA Asia Cup's official Facebook page.
This edition was originally scheduled between Aug. 3 to Aug. 15, 2021 but it was then postponed to Aug. 17-31, which conflicted with the postponed 2020 Summer Olympics.
That prompted a further postponement to the current date of Jul. 12-14, 2022.
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What are the results of the 2022 FIBA Asia Cup Draw?
Here's a look at the final Draw results for the 2022 FIBA Asia Cup:
| Group A | Group B | Group C | Group D |
| Saudi Arabia | Chinese Taipei | Iran | India |
| Jordan | China | Japan | Lebanon |
| Australia | Korea | Kazakhstan | Philippines |
| Indonesia | Bahrain | Syria | New Zealand |
After teams from the first three pots were slotted in their respective groups, Indonesia, as the hosts, had the privilege of choosing the group they wanted.
They picked Group A, therefore, getting slotted alongside Asia Cup 2017 champions Australia, Jordan, and Saudi Arabia.
India's draw for 2022 FIBA Asia Cup
As can be seen in the above table, India has been grouped along with Lebanon, Philippines and New Zealand in Group D.
Given that India was the 13th best nation in this 16-team tournament, by the current FIBA Men's rankings, and the fact that it was in the same pot as the three nations it outranks including hosts Indonesia, it was never going to be an easy draw for India.
MORE: India's track record at FIBA Asia Cup
In their current group, New Zealand and Philippines are two of the top six nations in Asia while Lebanon ranks ninth in comparison to India's rank of 14.
