From being a guard-oriented team, Gilas Pilipinas had morphed into a tall, athletic and very versatile squad when it makes its return to the FIBA Basketball World Cup on Friday at the Philippine Arena in Bocaue, Bulacan.
Gilas coach Chot Reyes said having a taller roster is something new, prompting him to come up with a different approach when the Filipinos wage war against the best players in the world in this prestigious 32-nation spectacle.
“It’s pretty ironic that when we had the size, the game has gone the opposite way,” Reyes, who also coached Gilas in its first World Cup appearance in 38 years in 2014, said during the media availability session at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on Thursday.
“When there was a time when it’s all about size, we were the first team in the world to play small ball in 2013 and 2014 and even before. We were playing with three point guards with Jimmy Alapag, Jayson Castro and Paul Lee and they were bashing us. Now, everyone is doing that.”
Despite the game’s evolution and the present condition of having the tallest frontcourt ever in 7-foot-3 Kai Sotto, 6-foot-10 June Mar Fajardo and AJ Edu, and 6-foot-9 Japeth Aguilar, Reyes said they will be employing a different strategy without thinking about the team’s chances to win.
“I’ve learned in those nine years, especially in those competitions, not to think about and not to worry about chances because it doesn’t matter who you’re playing with,” Reyes said.
“The chances are going to be difficult. The competition is so tough that if you spend time thinking about your chances, it’s really not very useful.”
“We would rather focus on other more productive things. For us, we’re just focusing on the things that are in front of us. We’re focusing on the things that we can control. If we do that, it improves our chances.”
But assembling this Gilas squad wasn’t easy, especially since they are being haunted by their very forgettable performance in the previous edition of the World Cup in China.
Reyes initially identified 21 players who have what it takes to compete in the World Cup.
Carl Tamayo and Poy Erram, however, begged off due to injuries while Jordan Heading was a no-show. Naturalized players Justin Brownlee and Ange Kouame also left as the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas assigned them to compete in the 19th Asian Games and the William Jones Cup, respectively.
Gilas also embarked on a grueling training in Laguna, Estonia and Lithuania and played a series of friendly matches before making the final cuts.
In the end, Calvin Oftana, Thirdy Ravena, Ray Parks and Chris Newsome were let go to formally assemble the final roster.
Reyes, however, admitted that it’s hard to quantify their chances.
“What are our chances? In terms of percentage or any kind of metric for that? It’s hard to say. Just by the very nature of the competition in the World Cup, we already know how difficult it is,” Reyes said.
“But yes, we like our chances because we are here. It means 50 percent, which is showing up. We’re all here and putting ourselves in a 50 percent position and we’ll see.”
JORDAN CLARKSON
Shooting guard
6-foot-5
31 years old
Utah Jazz star Jordan Clarkson makes his first World Cup appearance adding luster to the current Gilas Pilipinas squad.
It will be the 2021 National Basketball Association Sixth Man of the Year winner’s third time to suit up for the country since playing in the 18th Asian Games and Asian Qualifier August window in 2022.
He averaged 25 points, 6.5 assists, and 5.5 rebounds in two games with Gilas last year.
DWIGHT RAMOS
Shooting guard
6-foot-4
24 years old
Dwight Ramos made his debut for Gilas Pilipinas back in 2021 during the FIBA Asia Cup qualifier.
He played in all five windows of the Asian Qualifier Gilas participated in with norms of 12.4 points, 6.0 rebounds and 2.6 assists in 10 games.
Ramos is currently playing professional basketball for Levanga Hokkaido in the Japanese B.League.
CJ PEREZ
Guard/Forward
6-foot-2
29 years old
CJ Perez is out for redemption in his second World Cup appearance following his debut in 2019.
Despite being the youngest member of the squad four years ago, the San Miguel Beer scorer put in an impressive average of 12.6 points, 3.2 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game.
Perez suited up for Gilas during the Asian Qualifier with norms of 8.3 points, 2.5 assists, two rebounds and one steal in four outings.
RHENZ ABANDO
Guard/Forward
6-foot-2
25 years old
Rhenz Abando makes his return to the Gilas roster after more than a year since his short stint during the third window of the Asian Qualifier.
Abando, who led Anyang KGC to the Korean Basketball League throne earlier this year, debuted for Gilas last year in the FIBA Asia Cup averaging 4.8 points, one rebound and 0.3 assists in four games.
In his last Gilas duty, he normed 6.5 points in two games.
JAPETH AGUILAR
Forward/Center
6-foot-9
36 years old
Japeth Aguilar is the other veteran aside from June Mar Fajardo who is donning the national colors in the World Cup for a third time.
The Barangay Ginebra San Miguel big man who was appointed as Gilas team captain averaged 4.8 points and three rebounds per game during his 2019 stint.
RR POGOY
Guard/Forward
6-foot-2
31 years old
Wanting to put the ghost of the 2019 debacle to rest, Roger Pogoy vows to pour everything inside the court to give Gilas Pilipinas the redemption it deserves.
The TNT Tropang Giga backcourt general had a measly four points, two rebounds and 0.8 assists per game in the previous World Cup.
But with norms of nine points, 3.3 rebounds and 1.5 steals in four matches during the Asian Qualifier, Pogoy is sure to make a bigger impact this time around.
KAI SOTTO
Center
7-foot-3
21 years old
Kai Sotto is a young towering center forged by numerous international stints.
He returns for an international tour of duty for the first time since playing in the Asian Qualifier fourth window last year where he averaged 13 points, 10.5 rebounds and 3.0 blocks in two outings.
Sotto played professional basketball with the Adelaide 36ers in the Australian National Basketball League from 2021 to February 2023 before joining the Hiroshima Dragonflies in the Japanese B. League.
He went undrafted in the 2022 NBA Draft.
AJ EDU
Forward/Center
6-foot-10
23 years old
Filipino-Nigerian AJ Edu is raring to make an impact in his official debut for Gilas Pilipinas.
Now fit again after suffering an ankle injury that kept him out of commission during the squad’s European training camp, the former Gilas Boys standout wants to prove he deserves getting a crack in the final roster.
Edu, who plays for the Toyama Grouses in the Japanese B. League, averaged 8.5 points in four outings during Gilas’ campaign in the Heyuan WUS International Basketball Tournament in China early this month.
KIEFER RAVENA
Point guard
6-foot
29 years old
Kiefer Ravena is on a mission to restore Gilas Pilipinas’ pride after going dead last in the previous edition.
A grizzled veteran of numerous international caps including winning five straight SEA Games minutes, Ravena wants to better his performance from the 2019 World Cup where he averaged 4.8 points, 1.4 rebounds and 1.6 assists.
SCOTTIE THOMPSON
Shooting guard
6-foot-1
30 years old
There were doubts over Scottie Thompson’s participation in the World Cup after coming off a hand injury that he sustained during Gilas Pilipinas training camp in Lithuania last July.
But the Barangay Ginebra San Miguel star embodied a never-say-die spirit as he rejoined the team after a month of missing a chunk of Gilas’ buildup.
Thompson put up an average of 6.2 points, 6.8 rebounds and 4.8 assists in six games for Gilas during the Asian Qualifier windows.
JUNE MAR FAJARDO
Center
6-foot-11
33 years old
June Mar Fajardo is one of the only two remnants of the Gilas Pilipinas team that qualified for the 2014 World Cup held in Spain for the first time since 1978.
The six-time Philippine Basketball Association Most Valuable Player averaged seven points and five rebounds per game in five outings during the 2019 China edition of the World Cup where the country finished last in the 32-nation field.
JAMIE MALONZO
Forward
6-foot-7
27 years old
Jamie Malonzo hopes to provide energy off the bench as a reliable sixth man for Gilas Pilipinas.
The high-flying Barangay Ginebra star averaged 5.8 points and 2.5 rebounds during his six-game stint for the national team in the Asian Qualifier.
Now in his first World Cup appearance, wants to make the most of his time representing the country in front of the home crowd.
