By Jordan Yap — Kuala Lumpur, March 28

The question hovered in the air before tipoff. With star player "Mei Mei" Ting Chun Hong sidelined due to injury, who would step up?

The answer came quietly, but firmly: Jayson Lee.

The 25-year-old from Penang didn’t start. He wasn’t even the obvious pick. But when his number was called, Jayson delivered—scoring 10 points, grabbing 4 rebounds, dishing out 2 assists, and flashing the kind of poise and toughness that doesn’t show up on the stat sheet.

It wasn’t flashy. But it was fearless.

"You just put on a seatbelt and let him go play."

"I’m a big fan of Jayson," said NS Matrix Deers head coach Felton Sealey, unprompted and without hesitation after the game. "Jayson had a tremendous MBL. I mean, he's a guy you put on a seatbelt on and let him go play."

Sealey’s praise wasn’t coming from a place of surprise—it came from familiarity. The two had worked together before at the Fo Guang Cup in Taiwan last year, where Sealey already saw the foundation: work ethic, composure, and quiet confidence.

"He's played for me in the Fulgon Cup, so I'm very familiar with him," Sealey said. "And he's a hard-working player. He doesn't talk too much, but he talks with the basketball."

Then came the moment of validation.

"He stepped in today (Thursday) and showed his abilities," Sealey added. "And more importantly, his energy is just tremendous."

The numbers behind the moment

For those who’ve followed Malaysian basketball, Jayson Lee’s performance wasn’t entirely out of the blue.

This season in the Malaysian Major Basketball League (MBL), he averaged 11.7 points per game for the Penang Sunrise Youngsters, shooting 30.1% from three. But the real highlight came in December—when he erupted for 37 points, including 22 in a single fourth quarter, to lead a dramatic comeback win over the Johor Southern Tigers.

And for those still wondering if that was a fluke? Look back even further—to December 2022—when Lee dropped a career-high 40 points against Singapore's Adroit Basketball Club. The résumé is there. So is the big-game DNA.

Still, Thursday night was different.

This was one of the Asia’s biggest club competitions. On a bigger stage. Against a bigger team. And Jayson Lee didn’t blink.

A player coaches notice—and opponents are starting to

Jayson didn’t need to put up another 30-piece to leave an impression. Sometimes, all it takes is how you move, how you defend, how you belong on the floor.

That much was evident not just to Sealey, but to others watching. Among them: Indonesian powerhouse Prawira Bandung head coach David Singleton, who was sitting at the courtside, took particular interest in Jayson’s performance—asking about his background during the game.

More than a fill-in—he’s part of the future

For the Deers, Thursday’s game ended in another loss. But what they found in Jayson Lee might prove more valuable than one win.

He wasn’t just a temporary replacement for Mei Mei. He was a legitimate boost to the team’s backcourt depth—and perhaps a glimpse at the next generation of Malaysian basketball.

Because when opportunity came, Jason Lee didn’t just answer.

He had already been preparing for it all along.

做好準備機會一來就接住 李訓聞亞冠首秀寫下亮眼篇章

當王牌"美美"陳俊宏因傷缺陣，誰能頂上火力、填補空缺？金群利金鹿選擇了25歲的後衛李訓聞，而這名來自檳城的射手，也用行動證明，自己早已準備好。

在對佩利塔再也的比賽中，李訓聞替補出場攻下10分、4籃板和2助攻，交出令人驚喜的亞冠首秀。他展現出冷靜的出手節奏、不拖泥帶水的決斷力，以及不怕對抗的防守態度，成功贏得球迷和教練團的肯定。

"我一直都是李訓聞的粉絲。"金鹿主帥費頓西利毫不掩飾對這名愛將的欣賞，"他在大馬職籃（MBL）打出了一個很棒的賽季。他就是那種你只要繫好安全帶，然後放他上場，就能放心讓他去打球的球員。"

費頓透露自己對李訓聞並不陌生，早在去年台灣佛光盃時期就已合作過："他曾在佛光盃為我效力，所以我對他非常熟悉。他是一個非常勤奮的球員。他不太愛說話，但他用籃球說話。他上場後展現了自己的能力，更重要的是，他帶來的能量真的非常棒。"

對於一名替補後衛來說，“隨時準備好”並不只是口號，而是一種態度——而訓聞，正是那個時刻準備好的人。

本季曾單節狂砍22分

儘管這是他在亞冠的初登場，但對熟悉大馬籃壇的球迷來說，李訓聞的名字並不陌生。 他在本賽季代表檳城昇陽少年參加大馬職籃聯賽，場均貢獻11.7分，三分命中率達30.1%。其中最經典的一戰，就是去年12月對陣柔佛南虎之役——他在第4節一口氣轟下22分，全場豪取37分，帶領球隊上演驚天逆轉。

更早在2022年12月對新加坡聖公文化的比賽中，他也曾砍下生涯最高單場40分，證明自己具備爆發力與大心臟。

讓更多人看見他的價值

周四晚對佩利塔再也之戰，李訓聞雖未再度上演得分大爆發，但他的成熟度、態度與節奏感，讓人看見他與國際賽節奏之間的契合。

更難得的是，在場邊觀戰的印尼球隊萬隆勇士主帥辛格頓也對他表現頗有興趣，主動詢問球員背景，顯示他已悄悄吸引其他球隊的關注。

對於金鹿和大馬男籃而言，這場比賽輸了比分，卻發現了一顆值得栽培的寶石。李訓聞的出現，不只是頂替，更是球隊後場深度的真實補強。

當機會來臨，只有準備好的人能接得住——李訓聞，用行動說話。