China's Wang Zhizhi (right) is guarded by Mohammed Saleem Abdulla of Qatar during the 2013 FIBA Asia Championship in Manila on August 10. Photo: CFP

If Chinese fans were able to accept­ the national team failing to beat South Korea and Iran in the 2013 FIBA (International Basketball Associa­tion) Asia Championship, an 18-point defeat to Chinese Taipei and a fifth place at the tournament were totally unacceptable.

Some argue that we should limit foreign players' court time in the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) games as they impair the progress of homegrown players.

But what is most important to the critics is that our young players are not given ­opportunities to compete with high-level players from abroad.

The Chinese national basketball team had dominated Asian basketball for years, but now, they look like an old guard of veterans incapable of competing with the youth of today.

Wang Zhizhi, erstwhile of the Dallas Mavericks, is already 36 years old. Similarly, players like Yi Jianlian, Zhu Fangyu, Wang Shipeng and Sun Yue remain stalwarts of the team after almost a decade.

Young players

Wang Zhelin, born in 1994, is the only new face in the squad. So where are the other Chinese rising stars? The CBA may pride itself on being the host of many Chinese players but this is no feat to brag about these days.

Accusations have flown that highly paid foreign players in the CBA are to blame for this disaster as they dominate court time, sponsors and training. Coaches are not paying attention to Chinese players; the theory goes, as they are too focused on NBA talents such as Stephon Marbury, Tracy McGrady and JR Smith shining in the CBA with ease.

As a result, Chinese young players are supposedly lacking in experience and match fitness as they have too few chances to prove themselves and earn national team spots.

National team

However, even if some more young players had been selected to the national team for the 2013 FIBA Asia games, what would ­happen?

They would participate in the FIBA Basketball World Cup in Spain next year alongside veteran players like Wang Zhizhi and Yi, but likely lost most of their matches, just as the national team did in 2010 in Turkey, losing five of six games.

Even Iran, the new Asian champions, have qualified for Spain, they may also be dominated­ by European and ­American teams. Just as when Yao Ming led the team, victory in Asia does not mean ­victory beyond Asia.

Fans understand that there is a huge gap between the Chinese national team and the international elite.

As Chinese basketball fans enjoy NBA, the best basketball league in the world, they talk more about the world's top players such as LeBron James and Kobe Bryant than about stars at home, which is understandable.

They are more concerned about Team China one day threatening the world's top teams such as Spain, Argentina and Greece, or even challenging the overlord, USA. Winning Asian games won't satisfy them.

Better ways

Some Chinese talent players could do better but sticking in the less competing games makes them improve too slowly, or lose skill.

Yao, when he competed in the NBA, faced the best center in the world at the time, Shaquille O'Neal. Once he was overshadow­ed by O'Neal, but training and ­playing against the best, eventually Yao could contend with him.

However, there are no more ­Chi­nese­ players who could secure an NBA spot. Therefore, the only exposure­ they get to top players is when stars like Marbury come to play in the CBA.

There are already many domestic players who can dribble past Marbury and score. What they need to do is to repeat this time and again. Finally, they will get used to it and beat him. After that, they will certainly beat the players who are at his level.

Therefore, the real problem lies not in young Chinese players not getting enough play time in the CBA, it is simply that they don't have the chance to play and beat the best.

The rules of the CBA could be modified in order to give young players as many chances as possible, such as extending the season, requiring teams to have deeper rosters.

We can do anything for these athletes except prevent them from competing with other excellent players. Competition ensures progress.

NBA commissioner David Stern waited 12 years to see Bryant after he shook hands with Michael Jordan in 1984. Another seven years later, he met James.

Superstars will shine, the only thing they need is time.

The author is a sports commentator in Beijing who holds a doctorate in sports.