SBP’s Ultimate Goal: 2028 LA Olympics
The Samahan ng Basketball ng Pilipinas (SBP) president Al Panlilio might be disappointed that Gilas Pilipinas men’s basketball team failed to qualify for the Paris Olympics but still optimistic that they can work on to reach the ultimate goal of making it to the Los Angeles Games in 2028.
Earlier this year, Gilas head coach Tim Cone said that “The ultimate goal for the SBP is to make it to the LA Olympics, I think that’s the ultimate goal. That’s what they are looking for,”
They have tried to reach the Olympic goal this year in the Olympic Qualifying Tournament (OQT) held in Latvia. They upset the host team and FIBA’s No. 6 ranked team during their match-up in the group stage.
Gilas was defeated by the No. 23 ranked Georgia narrowly in their next assignment ending in a three-way tie at their group but superior quotient points gave Latvia and the Philippines the advantage of moving to the next round. In the crossover Semis, the No. 37 ranked Philippines bowed down to No. 12 ranked Brazil who overcame a double-digit lead in the first half. Brazil eventually won the OQT in Latvia after defeating the host team in the finals.
Panlilio might be disappointed that the nation’s pride team didn’t make it to Paris but he has seen a glimpse of hope for the team’s future endeavors especially in targeting the ultimate goal of making it to the LA Olympics.
“In the OQT in Latvia, we proved we can compete with the best in the world,” said Panlilio. “Our vision is to go to LA through the World Cup by becoming the highest Asian finisher. In Latvia, I felt we had a 50-50 chance against Brazil in the semis if only Kai (Sotto) played and even if only for five to 10 minutes to make an impact like Willis Reed (with the New York Knicks in Game Seven of the 1970 NBA Finals). Kai was cleared by doctors to play and joined the shootaround but just before the game, he told (coach) Tim (Cone) he couldn’t play because he was still in pain. If only we had (AJ) Edu, June Mar (Fajardo) wouldn’t have had to extend himself. If we had Jamie (Malonzo) and Scottie (Thompson), maybe we would’ve gone to the final, who knows? But we showed we can compete with the big boys.”
To reach the goal of making it in the 2028 Olympics, there are two ways the Philippines can earn a ticket.
The first way is to finish as the highest-placed Asian country in the FIBA World Cup to be held in Qatar on August 27-September 12, 2027. The second route is to top one of the four FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournaments. Both paths will require qualifiers that will make the route difficult. But the more doable path is to clinch the slot in the FIBA World Cup.
Gilas Naturalized Players
As for Gilas naturalized players, Panlilio said the 36-year-old star Justine Brownlee continues to shine in donning the Philippine colors.
SBP is in the process of naturalizing the 28-year-old and 6'10" forward/center Bennie Boatwright, for the future. Meanwhile, ex-Ateneo big man and UB Chartres Métropole player Ange Kouame, 26, is available as a backup.
In tournaments like the SEA Games where only a passport is required for eligibility, it’s an option to enlist more than one naturalized player.
Coaching Duties
In the SBP’s lined up a four-year program, Cone’s term as Gilas coach is year-to-year. He has put together a 12-man team that he intends to keep for the next four years, but is open to minor tweaks throughout the build-up.
“But ultimately, in the fourth year, we want to be playing in the Qatar World Cup. We have to qualify first but we want to be playing in the Qatar World Cup and we want to be finishing first in Asia, and get that berth in the LA Olympics. That’s been clear to me. That’s the goal of the SBP,” said Cone.
Part of the build-up for the long term is the coming first window of the Fiba Asia Cup 2025 qualifiers. Gilas Pilipinas won their first two games of the said tournament, the first was against Hong Kong last February 22 and the second was over the Chinese Taipei team last February 25. The next one will be a battle against world No. 21 ranked New Zealand on November 21.
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