Hong Kong Eastern will have no time to lick their wounds following their 84-71 defeat to the Saigon Heat in the Asean Basketball League (ABL) on Sunday in Kuala Lumpur. The city’s franchise will jump right back into action on Tuesday, taking on Philippines outfit Zamboanga Valientes at the MABA Stadium. The first meeting between the two teams will not be an ordinary one – at least not for team captain Stephen Chan Siu-wing. Point guard Chan – who has started all but one game this season – is relishing the prospect of facing off with new Valientes import Mario Chalmers, a two-time NBA champion. “He is definitely the highest profile player I will be facing,” the 30-year-old said. “I am excited to play against him and looking forward to learning from such a seasoned, veteran player.” Chan will be looking to shake off his recent issues on the court first, though, after suffering an injury last month. “My body is still struggling a bit as the injury from the first circuit in Singapore is bothering me still, and my movement is not that smooth,” he said. It is not just Chan who needs to sharpen his game if Eastern are to bounce straight back. Having escaped with a narrow 85-83 win over the Singapore Slingers last Saturday, the 2017 champions lost their third match of the season after a second-half meltdown. A three-point deficit at halftime ballooned to 14 as the Heat cemented their lead with a 13-2 run after the restart. Eastern never recovered despite O’Darien Bassett chipping in a game-high 32 points. Chris McLaughlin and Dominic Gilbert added 11 and 10 apiece, but no other players reached double figures. “Two games in less than 24 hours – our players were tired and that is normal,” head coach Zeljko Pavlicevic said. “We had so many mistakes and the Heat played very well, they deserved this victory.” Eastern – Hong Kong’s only professional team – have averaged 17 turnovers, and have conceded over 20 points off turnovers in their last two games. “Our mistakes were everywhere,” Chan said. “We have to move the ball well and minimise our turnovers.” Chalmers wasted no time on his debut last Saturday as he guided the Valientes to a 92-82 win over the Macau Black Bears. It was only a fourth win out of nine for the Philippines side. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Mario Chalmers (@mchalmers6) The 36-year-old point guard chipped in 19 points on just 10 attempts in 30 minutes. The nine-year NBA veteran also had seven assists and three rebounds. “The game against the Valientes will be very difficult with the addition of Mario on their roster,” 71-year-old Pavlicevic said. “The Philippines always have good, skilful players and they are a different team now. “But with Saturday’s victory over the Slingers, we are so close with our final four targets. We will try our best to win and cap the Malaysia circuit on a high note.” Eastern now sit third in the table, a point behind league leaders NS Matrix and the Heat. Following Tuesday’s game with the Valientes, Eastern will head to Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam for their final regular season leg where they will play three more games before the play-offs begin in early March.