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沒有人想以 33 比 62 落敗。

不是披上大馬戰袍的孩子，不是在場邊指揮的教練，也不是長途跋涉到場觀戰的父母。每一個踏上球場的人都帶著自豪、希望與犧牲。沒有人渴望帶著失敗走下場。

但當你看到 40 分鐘內出現 38 次失誤，幾乎每分鐘一次，你就會明白，問題早在開賽前就已經存在。差距並不在努力，而在於制度、結構與長期以來的選擇，早已決定了這些球員的處境。

在本週三（9月17日）的 FIBA U16 女籃亞洲杯乙組附加賽中，馬來西亞不敵伊朗，升上甲組的希望滅。幾週前，U16 男籃同樣以大比分慘負伊朗。兩場比賽，不同性別，相同結局。

更殘酷的真相是：這樣的故事已經重複了很多年。每一代球員都繼承了相同的不足。他們盡最大努力準備，卻始終要面對基礎更紮實、系統更完整的對手。

平等的投資

最近和一位朋友談起，他提出了一個簡單卻深刻的建議：既然我們能在國家隊身上投入資源，就應該同樣在基層投入。若缺乏這樣的平衡，投入與結果之間的差距只會越來越大。老土的說一句，所謂「萬丈高樓平地起」，你可以蓋出全城最高的大樓，但如果地基薄弱，它永遠無法長久。

這意味著要提升基層教練，讓他們接觸現代化的方法與新觀念。因為更好的教練才能培養出更好的球員。我們的競爭對手都在不斷提升，如果我們沒有跟上步伐，日後要追趕差距只會更加困難。投資基層是給未來買保險。

缺席已久的圓桌會議

朋友的另一個建議是，每次比賽結束後，都應該有一個圓桌會議：一個有結構的場合，讓教練們討論：我們的對手在哪些方面做得比我們好？我們需要在哪些地方改進才能更上一層樓？

這不是在追究責任，而是勇敢揭開問題並提出關鍵的問題：什麼樣的系統造就穩定？什麼樣的訓練方法讓我們落後？什麼樣的選擇讓別人脫穎而出？缺乏集體反思，錯誤就會被掩蓋，成長也無法累積。

如果官方沒有推動，那麼我們也可以由外部來舉辦。球會、學院、或是民間團體都能承辦。重要的不是由誰來發起，而是必須有人來做。因為每一次失敗後的沉默，只會保證同樣的循環繼續。

記錄，而非空談

我們總是說每一次失敗都是一次「學習經驗」。

我想，如果把這些所謂的經驗都整理下來，恐怕早已能編成一部百科全書。問題是，沒有人去系統性地整理，所以每一次教練與球員都要從零開始。所謂的「學習」往往在比賽結束後就煙消雲散。

這就是為什麼記錄和報告很重要。想像一下，如果每一位參加圓桌會議的教練都準備一份文件：比賽分析、遇到的挑戰，以及具體的改進方案。不只是批評，而是建設性的建議。若能公開分享，這些報告就能把痛苦的失敗轉化為集體的資源。久而久之，每支球隊都能站在前人累積的基礎上，而不是每次都從頭開始。

日本在這方面提供了一個參考模式。在奧運或世界杯等大賽之後，他們的協會都會公開發佈《國家隊技術報告》，甚至可以直接在官網下載。當然，他們似乎並沒有針對青年隊做同樣的報告。但這正是我們可以創新的地方：若我們能在 U16 或 U18 等級就產出這樣的報告，讓每一個週期都留下紀錄供後人學習，隨著時間累積，這些檔案就會成為真正推動進步的藍本。

從批評到藍圖

大馬籃球不需要更多的指責，而是需要平等投資、反思與紀錄的文化。

平等的投資強化基層。圓桌會議讓學習成為集體財富。報告則確保經驗不被遺忘。三者互相補充。資金若沒有對話，就會被浪費；對話若沒有紀錄，就成了噪音；紀錄若沒有後續行動，就只能落灰。但當三者結合，就能形成真正的藍圖。

失敗永遠會令人心痛。但如果我們能把它轉化為知識、延續與行動，那麼也許——真的也許——我們就能不再只是說「從失敗中學習」，而是開始展現我們到底學到了什麼。當我們能展現進步，今天的失敗也就能成為明日勝利的基礎。

這不是速成的方案，也不會在一個週期內徹底改變現況。但它至少提供了一條不同於無奈的道路。與其繼續等待奇蹟，不如打造一個讓進步成為必然的體系。

如果這篇文章讓你重新思考籃球該如何成長，歡迎訂閱。我每週日都會寫一封像這樣的信。

— Jordan

From Critique to Blueprint: The Future of Malaysian Basketball

Nobody wants to lose 62–33.

Not the kids wearing Malaysia’s jersey. Not the coaches on the bench. Not the parents who travelled hours to watch their daughters fight on home soil. Everyone who steps onto that court carries pride, hope, and sacrifice. Nobody dreams of walking off defeated.

But when you see 38 turnovers in 40 minutes — almost one every minute — you realise they were set up to fail long before tip-off. The gap isn’t about effort. It’s about the systems, structures, and choices that shaped these players long before the referee blew the whistle.

On Wednesday (17 September) at the FIBA U16 Women’s Asia Cup (Division B), Malaysia fell to Iran in the playoff round, ending hopes of promotion to Division A. Weeks earlier, the boys’ U16 team had also been eliminated by the same opponent. Two defeats. Same gulf. Same lesson. Different gender, same outcome.

The truth is harder: this story has repeated for a long time. Each new generation of players inherits the same shortcomings. They prepare as best they can, but they walk into battles where the opponent’s foundation is stronger, deeper, and steadier.

Equal Investment

In a recent conversation, a friend suggested something simple but powerful: if we can pour resources into national teams, we should spend equally on grassroots. Without this balance, the gap between spending and results will only grow wider. You can build the tallest skyscraper in the city, but if the foundation is weak, it will never stand firm.

That means upgrading grassroots coaches and giving them exposure to modern methods and new ideas. At the end of the day, better coaches create better players. If our youngest talents never see beyond the same old drills, they’ll always be outmatched.

Our competitors are constantly improving, and if we don't keep up, it will only be harder to close the gap later. Investment in grassroots is insurance for the future.

The Missing Roundtable

Another suggestion from a friend is honest dialogue. After every tournament, there should be a roundtable — a structured space where coaches discuss: what did our competitors do better than us? What must we improve to reach the next level?

This isn’t about assigning blame. It’s about pulling back the curtain and asking tough but necessary questions. What systems produce consistency? What training methods leave us behind? What choices allow others to surge ahead? Without collective reflection, mistakes stay hidden and growth never compounds.

If the organization won’t initiate it, then let’s do it externally. Clubs, academies, or private groups could host it. What matters is that the conversation happens. Because silence after every defeat only ensures the same cycle repeats.

Reports, Not Silence

We often say every defeat is a “learning experience.” But if all those lessons were written down, we’d probably have an encyclopedia by now.

The problem is, nobody compiles them — so every new cycle of coaches and players starts from scratch. What gets called “learning” often vanishes into thin air the moment the tournament ends.

That’s why reports matter. Imagine if every participating coach prepared a document: performance analysis, challenges faced, and concrete solutions. Not just critique, but constructive ideas. Shared openly, these reports could turn painful losses into a collective resource. Over time, this culture would mean each team begins not at square one, but on the shoulders of those who came before.

Japan offers a model here. After big tournaments like the Olympics or World Cup, their federation publishes a National Team Technical Report. It’s public — you can even download it from their website.

To be fair, I haven’t found similar reports for their youth teams. But that’s where Malaysia could innovate: produce reports at the youth level, so every U16 or U18 cycle leaves behind a record others can build on.

Imagine a library of reports stacked year after year, chronicling struggles, breakthroughs, and ideas. That would become our real playbook for progress.

From Critique to Blueprint

Malaysia’s basketball story doesn’t need more finger-pointing. It needs a culture of equal investment, reflection, and documentation.

Equal investment to strengthen grassroots. Roundtables to make learning collective. reports to ensure lessons aren’t lost. Each part reinforces the others. Money without dialogue becomes waste. Dialogue without records becomes noise. Records without follow-through gather dust. But when combined, they form a blueprint.

Defeat will always hurt. But if we turn it into knowledge, continuity, and action, then maybe — just maybe — we can stop calling every loss a “learning experience,” and finally start showing what we’ve learned. And once we show progress, the defeats of today can become the foundation of tomorrow’s victories.

This isn’t a quick fix. It won’t change everything in one cycle. But it offers a different path than resignation. Instead of waiting for miracles, we build a system where progress is inevitable.

If this story made you rethink how we grow the game, hit the subscribe button. I send one like this every Sunday.

— Jordan