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Philippine Basketball Association (SBP) President Al Panlilio announced on Friday Gilas Pilipinas’ roster for the 2021 FIBA Asia Cup qualifiers set to take place on November 26-30 in Manama, Bahrain.
The rookie chooses Allyn Bulanadi, Isaac Go, Matt and Mike Nieto and Rey Suerte leads the 16-man group that will prepare for the tournament.
They are joined by the unconditional collegiate Kobe Paras, Calvin Oftana, Justin Baltazar, Kenmark Carino, Dave Ildefonso, Will Navarro, Jaydee Tungcab, Dwight Ramos, the brothers Juan and Javi Gomez de Liano, and the naturalization prospect Angelo Kouame, a member of the basketball team of the Athenaeum of Ivory Coast.
Panlilio said that the SBP has already obtained authorization from the Chief of Implementation of the National Action Plan against the secretary of COVID-19, Carlito Gálvez, Jr., and the Deputy Chief Implementation Secretary, Vince Dizon, to participate in the tournament.
“The SBP already had a plan to form a team for the November window weeks ago, but we had to make sure we did everything according to the rules due to the current situation,” said Panlilio.
“SBP President Emeritus Manny V. Pangilinan, as part of the FIBA Central Board, has been adamant about our participation as FIBA restarts the Asia Cup Qualifiers to further strengthen our partnership with them and demonstrate that we are completely behind them in this endeavor. “
“MVP’s guidance has been critical throughout this process and we are happy to finally get the green light,” he added.
In a letter dated October 19, the SBP requested guidance from the National Working Group against COVID-19 (NTF), on behalf of the Inter-Institutional Working Group (IATF) on the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF), on carrying out of a “Bubble” training and competing in Bahrain.
However, the NTF disapproved of the team’s participation as the Department of Foreign Affairs does not allow Filipinos to travel to Bahrain due to the coronavirus pandemic.
In a separate letter dated November 9, the SBP requested a reconsideration, citing the strict medical and safety protocols in place for the event, including testing prior to departure and upon arrival in Bahrain.
The NTF reversed its previous decision and gave its approval to SBP’s request.
Project manager Tab Baldwin’s team along with Jong Uichico, Boyet Fernandez, Alton Lister, Sandro Soriano and Andrei Tolentino will begin training under a bubble arrangement at Inspire in Calamba, Laguna.
All players and coaches tested negative for COVID-19 as the group will begin their practice on Saturday.
The team will face Thailand twice in Bahrain, on November 27 and November 30. Gilas was supposed to play South Korea, but the Koreans have informed FIBA that they will not send a team due to the pandemic.
The country is in Group A of the FIBA Asia qualifiers with a 1-0 card after beating Indonesia 100-70 on February 23 in Jakarta. Korea has a 2-0 card, Thailand 0-1 and Indonesia 0-2.
The SBP has decided not to invite PBA players to this FIBA window even if some have expressed a willingness to join, including NLEX’s Kiefer Ravena, after they become available after their teams leave the bubble. .
However, Panlilio, a member of the PBA board of directors representing Meralco, said that there is no doubt that the PBA remains an important partner for the SBP and that the inclusion of PBA players on future rosters remains crucial to the success of Gilas Pilipinas.
“The best talents are in the PBA and we will continue to work closely with them but, for this window, we must also take into account what the PBA players went through,” said Panlilio.
“They were separated from their families for at least six weeks and had to go through a grueling schedule. We know that some of them are willing to play for the flag and the country and we appreciate that they come to us, but it is important that they take time to recover physically and mentally.
As for Kouame, Panlilio said that although his naturalization is not yet final, he was added to the group to begin the process of learning about the system and getting acquainted with Gilas’ classmates.
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