Former KBL player Kangbail (29, 194 cm) is in the midst of a transformation into a 3×3 player.
The Mongolian native was selected by Samsung with the seventh pick in the third round of the 2018 KBL Rookie Draft. He was evaluated as a forward with athleticism and three-point shooting ability, but he didn’t make much of an impact in the pros. He became an unsigned free agent after the 2022-2023 season, ending his short six-year professional career.
However, Kangbail didn’t just leave the KBL, he didn’t hang up the basketball. The Korean-Mongolian dual citizen has played in the Mongolian league since leaving the KBL, and in February, he represented Mongolia in the FIBA Jeddah Asia Cup 2025 qualifiers.
More recently, he has been spotted in action on the 3×3 stage. Kangbai joined the Mongolian national 3×3 team called Zavkhan, which has competed in FIBA-organized 3×3 competitions such as SuperQuest and LightQuest.
Zavkhan is led by international 3×3 veteran Serenbatar Enktaibang (33, 200 cm), along with Ganbatar Namdorji (27, 190 cm) and Enksaikhan Bayarsaihan (24, 180 cm).
Zabkhan won the FIBA 3×3 Ulaanbaatar Superquest 2024 in Ulaanbaatar on March 20 and 21 (*The FIBA 3×3 Superquest is the highest level of the FIBA 3×3 competition, Level 8, after the FIBA 3×3 World Tour (Level 10) and Challenger (Level 9).
In the final, Zabkan met Mongolian 3×3 powerhouse Sansar and came away with a 22-20 victory. Kangweil connected on three long two-pointers in the final to finish with seven points and was named the tournament MVP.
“I’ve known Enktaiban for a long time, and he asked me to play 3×3 with him to earn ranking points, so I joined the team called Jabkan. “I think I’ve participated in about five tournaments so far,” he said. “Actually, I’ve participated in international 3×3 tournaments such as Challenger in Korea before I started playing professionally, so I’m not completely unfamiliar with it. I’m having a lot of fun. I won a SuperQuest tournament and was lucky enough to win MVP, so I’m happy.”
When asked about his role on the team, he said, “I’m a shooter. My teammates tell me to shoot without thinking because they’re going to get the rebounds. On defense, they pick up on moves and things I’m not doing right away. Obviously, they all have a lot of experience in 3×3, so I’m in good company and I’m learning a lot about 3×3,” he added.
Mongolia isn’t known for its 5-on-5 basketball, but 3-on-3 is a different story. Armed with power, strength, and toughness, the country has made a name for itself in Asia and even on the world stage. The national powerhouse Ulaanbaatar is ranked No. 10 in the world, and the country’s most famous 3×3 player, Delgerjem Dabasambu, is as famous as any celebrity.
“For Mongolians, 3×3 is the number one sport,” says Kangweil. Most people who play basketball play 3×3 more than 5-on-5. “And 3×3 itself is a very physical 토토 sport, so I think it’s a good fit for Mongolians who are strong and athletic,” he says of the sport’s popularity in Mongolia.
He and his Zabkan 3×3 teammates will compete in the FIBA 3×3 Hongcheon Challenger 2024 in Hongcheon-gun, Gangwon-do from May 11-12, and in early June, they will compete in the FIBA 3×3 World Tour Ulaanbaatar 2024.
“Being with a good teammate has given me the opportunity to play in world-class events like the Challenger and World Tour,” said Kangweil. I’ll be back in Korea next week for the Hongcheon Challenge after resting in my home in Mongolia,” said Kangbail. “We did well against strong teams in the SuperQuest, so I want to do well in the upcoming Challengers and World Tour, and I hope to help my teammates to achieve good results.”
As for what his life will be like after his time with Jabkan is over, he hasn’t made any concrete plans yet. “For now, I’ve decided to stay with Jabkan until June. After that, I don’t have any plans yet. I have family in Mongolia, but I will continue to live in Korea. Of course, I would love to be able to play 3×3 in Korea, but I also have to think about my livelihood. For now, I will think about my future plans after I finish the upcoming Challenger and World Tour events.”
“Even though I wasn’t a famous player in the KBL, I had a lot of fans who supported me, and they still support me a lot through messages. I would like to thank them for their continued support and I hope they know that I am still connected to basketball through 3×3, albeit in a different sport.”
