Health will be Gilas Pilipinas’ main priority as it heads for a grueling three-month preparation for the FIBA Basketball World Cup that the country will host from 25 August to 10 September.
Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas executive director Sonny Barrios said they are keeping their fingers crossed, hoping that nobody from the 21-man pool will get hurt as they march into the prestigious 32-nation tournament.
After all, the Filipinos are facing a very tight schedule where they will hold training camps in Laguna, Estonia and Lithuania before flying back to the country and leaving for China to see action in a warm-up tournament.
From China, Gilas will return home and compete in friendly matches against teams who will arrive early for the World Cup.
Barrios said he hopes nobody will get hurt so that Gilas coach Chot Reyes will have a lot of options as he assembles his final roster.
“We’re hoping that the pool members stay healthy so we’ll have a wide range of players to choose from,” Barrios said in a message to Daily Tribune.
SBP president Al Panlilio echoed Barrios’ statement, saying that they are praying for the health and safety of the players as they prepare for the biggest tournament of their lives.
“We’re praying for the good health and safety of all the players, coaches and everyone involved with Gilas Pilipinas,” Panlilio said.
“This is our national team, and they are all committed to give their utmost best as they go up against the best players in the world.”
The SBP chief also urged Filipinos to rally behind Gilas, who vowed to play their hearts out just to bring pride and glory to the country.
“We humbly seek the full support of our countrymen for our national pool. They are about to begin the critical part of their training for the World Cup and they need everybody to fall behind them,” Panlilio said.
But this early, Gilas are having a hard time staying fit.
Naturalized player Justin Brownlee, for one, had missed the team’s first official training as he was placed under health protocols while taking a break in the United States.
“He is still under health protocols in the United States but is expected to arrive any day now,” Gilas assistant coach Tim Cone said.
Aside from Brownlee, Calvin Oftana and Roger Pogoy are being hobbled by injuries as well.
Oftana crashed with an injured calf in Gilas Pilipinas’ first game in the 32nd Southeast Asian Games while Pogoy has yet to fully recover from a fractured finger he suffered in the finals of the Philippine Basketball Association Governors Cup last April. His finger needs at least four weeks to fully heal.
TNT Tropang Giga head coach Jojo Lastimosa said more than the injury will be out as he has to attend to a personal matter in the province.
“His wife is about to give birth any time now in Dumaguete City,” Lastimosa said.
