WHAT started off as a journey to leave an imprint on the world’s biggest basketball stage has, in a span of less than a week, turned into one of trying to save face as the Gilas Pilipinas men’s national basketball team tries for its very first win in the Fiba World Cup on Sunday, September 8, 2019, against Asian powerhouse, Iran.
Downed three straight times in the group stage, the Gilas found no respite in the classification phase as they got waylaid by Tunisia, 67-86, on Friday night.
A number of notable basketball personalities shared their opinions on what ails the country’s beloved national squad and how it possibly can be turned around.
Former PBA player Joel Co, believes that the road to redemption — which can possibly be had during the 2023 Fiba World Cup which the Philippines will co-host with Japan and Indonesia — will start with putting in place a long-term and sustainable program in order for the team to prepare well.
“We should have a long-term program for us to prepare well. It’s hard to judge and conclude with what we see during these recent Gilas games. It would be very unfair for us to conclude on these painful losses because we very well know that they have only had limited time preparing,” said Co, who is also the former team manager of the PBA team, Blackwater Elite.
Co continued: “It’s an easy excuse but it is what it is. That’s a fact. You cannot prepare for two weeks, three weeks or even a month then expect to go to battle against the best in the world and succeed.”
Co also implored the PBA and the country’s sports governing body to collaborate.
“Before we can even start preparing, we need a collaboration. A collective effort from everyone. The Philippine sports governing body and The PBA. The government has to intervene for any politics, if there is any, in the PBA on the selection of players. CJ Perez, (Robert) Bolick, (Roger) Pogoy, (Kiefer) Ravena can be the face of our national team. They’re still young and they can serve for more years. And we must also change our naturalized player.”
University of Cebu lead assistant coach, Rafael Alcoseba, pointed to the disparity in skill level and the amount of preparation as crucial factors in the Gilas games’ results in this tournament.
“Clearly we are overmatched, player for player, skill for skill and let’s not forget the height. Don’t get me wrong, I want Gilas to win but we have to understand that playing the pick and roll game at this level is not enough,” said the son of decorated head coach Yayoy Alcoseba.
“When you watch the game, you can clearly see the disconnect on offense, and the poor defensive rotation. I know Gilas was giving it their best, but so are the rest of the teams. So it just boils down to the skill level and preparation. Like what the Serbian coach said, we lack quality players. No offense to our Gilas players, they are the best in the Philippines, but it’s different when compared to the best of the world.”
Paul Alelu Flores, a former standout of the Far Eastern University Tamaraws, agreed that the lack of preparation time definitely doomed Gilas but also pointed to a more pressing concern: the lack of fight.
“Gilas has always been known for its ‘puso.’ This time, it just looks like they don’t have any heart on defense and offense. It’s only Perez and Bolick who are really being aggressive,” said Flores. (SunStar Cebu)