MANILA – The Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP) has named the Gilas Pilipinas Men pool that will play in the second window of the FIBA Asia Cup Qualifiers later this month.
Headlining the list that was revealed on Friday are Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) draftees Isaac Go, Rey Suerte, twin brothers Matt and Mike Nieto, and Allyn Bulanadi.
Joining them are Kobe Paras, Javi and Juan Gomez De Liano, Balti Baltazar, Dave Ildefonso, Will Navarro, Kenmark Carino, Calvin Oftana, Jaydee Tungcab, Dwight Ramos, and naturalization candidate Ange Kouame.
While Gilas Men mainstays like Kiefer Ravena, CJ Perez, and naturalized player Chris Standhardinger have become available for the November window following their respective PBA teams' early exit from the bubble season in Angeles, the SBP opted to bring in the Gilas Cadets instead in the buildup for the 2023 FIBA World Cup that the Philippines will co-host with Indonesia and Japan.
"The SBP has always wanted to start forming a core of younger players in preparation for 2023," SBP president Al Panlilio said.
He added that he also wanted the Gilas Men veterans to have some rest after having to play a compressed schedule that even saw them in action on consecutive days.
The best talents are in the PBA and we'll continue working closely with them but, for this window, we also have to take into consideration what the PBA players went through. They were apart from their families for at least six weeks and had to go through a grueling schedule. We know some of them are willing to play for flag and country and we appreciate them reaching out to us but it's important that they give themselves time to recover physically and mentally," Panlilio further said.
He then expressed bullishness on the amateur stars.
"We appreciate the commitment of all of these young athletes in joining our training camp. They have a lot of work to do in a short period of time but we're confident they'll all be up to the task. I'm sure they're all excited to be on the court again after being away from basketball for so long," Panlilio quipped
Gilas Men are now at the Inspire Sports Academy in Calamba for their training camp.
Coaching them are Jong Uichico, Tab Baldwin, and Boyet Fernandez. (PNA)
