SENDAI — Hernando Planells, the head coach of the expansion Ryukyu Golden Kings, sat down after his team's 87-78 loss to the Sendai 89ers on Sunday and spoke at length about his players, the challenges of building a team from scratch and his overall impressions of the bj-league.

Planells, 31, has rapidly built an impressive resume as a young coach. He's worked as an assistant coach in the college ranks at UNLV, as well as gaining valuable experience as an ABA coach and as a scout working under NBA scouting guru Marty Blake.

The Golden Kings, 4-16 entering this weekend's play, traveled to Niigata to face Masaya Hirose's Albirex BB team on Friday and Saturday.