Before the month ends, Gilas Pilipinas will start their quest for Asian basketball dominance as they face Indonesia and Thailand in the first qualifying window of the 2021 FIBA Asia Cup.
But with Gilas staples June Mar Fajardo, Japeth Aguilar, and Christian Standhardinger (among others) out of the lineup for various reasons, a huge question mark looms over the team as to who will step up and fill the void in the 4 and 5 slots.
Fortunately, we have these five guys currently in the Gilas pool who we think are up to the task — and should be ready to carry the load our unavailable bigs are leaving behind.
Marc Pingris
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Old, undersized, past his prime — call Ping whatever you want but it would be unwise of you to count him out. Originally brought in as a mentor for the young big men in the Gilas pool, coach Mark Dickel might have no choice but to call the number of the Pinoy Sakuragi given the circumstances.
There’s no question that Pingris still has enough in the tank to power through a few more international games, but we’ve never expected Pingris to produce eye-popping stat lines anyway (at least not now that he’s 38 years old). What Ping still brings to the table is his heart, hustle, and leadership — and all the on-court intangibles that come with it — which will only help our chances in the 2-game window.
Isaac Go
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Isaac Go is our homegrown version of the new-age center. Yes, he’s still willing to battle in the paint, but we all know that Go’s strength lies in his capability to knock down shots from downtown. His stretch-five skill set is not a luxury we had with guys like Fajardo and Aguilar, which should give Coach Dickel and his staff the opportunity to utilize new schemes in the upcoming games.
It would have been ideal to slowly integrate the former Blue Eagle into the program, but his high basketball IQ, his time under Tab Baldwin’s system, and what we saw with his battles against Ben Mbala a few years back make us think that he’ll be just fine.
Poy Erram
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If Indonesia and Thailand think they can wreak havoc in the paint against Gilas without Fajardo, Aguilar, and Standhardinger around, then they must have forgotten about J.P. Erram.
This former PBA Defensive Player of the Year once recorded four blocks in 12 minutes against Qatar and should still be a solid presence on that end of the court for team Pilipinas. Erram is one of the players we see thriving in a bigger role for the national team and should ease a lot of the pain of losing our main paint guys for the February window.
Troy Rosario
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Troy Rosario will have his hands full as (most likely) the main big man for this qualifying window. Aside from a skill set that boasts of athleticism and outside shooting, his familiarity with Coach Dickel’s system in TNT should translate well for this particular Gilas stint. There’s really nothing to dislike about Rosario’s game, except for the fact that he has yet to pull off consistent numbers in the international stage as he's done in the PBA. We know that he can do so much more with Gilas than what the stats show, and his projected role in the upcoming window will give him as many opportunities as he can handle to prove us right.
Justine Baltazar
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The 6'8 slotman from the De La Salle Green Archers is reportedly part of the pool but has yet to participate in practice. Whether he's manning the middle in collegiate (UAAP, Filoil) or semi-pro leagues (MPBL, NBL), Baltazar has proven that his 20-point, 20-rebound double-doubles are no fluke. Granted, the international competition is entirely different from the ones he's faced, the versatile big man still has great post moves, shooting range, and basketball instincts to make a significant impact.
Kai Sotto Justin Chua
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Hoping for Kai Sotto to make an appearance might be too much at this point, but at least the addition of Justin Chua to the pool addresses the need for another steady big man in Gilas’ roster.
Chua is a solid back-up big who knows what to do with a drop pass, can step out for a mid-range jumper, and rebounds well enough to be effective in the second unit. His familiarity with former Ateneo teammates JP Erram and newly appointed Gilas captain Kiefer Ravena is a huge plus for his integration in what could be his first national team appearance.
Source: Spin PH
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