By MARK REY MONTEJO
Gilas Pilipinas SEA games head coach Norman Black is not only looking to form a team but more importantly a balanced one to ensure that the country will be keeping its most precious gold in the biennial meet.
Three months before the official start of the SEA Games in Bangkok, Thailand, the Nationals are already focused on assembling the team for the men’s 5-on-5 basketball.
“We’re forming the strongest team, not just the strongest but the most possibly balanced team,” said Black during Tuesday’s PSA Forum presented by San Miguel Corporation, Philippine Sports Commission, Philippine Olympic Committee, MILO, Smart/PLDT, and the country’s 24/7 sports app Arena Plus.
“There’s a lot of work to be done as far as organizing the team and preparation are concerned, but by the time we arrive at the Southeast Asian Games we will be ready,” he added as he graced the weekly event with Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP) Erika Dy.
Black is reprising the position which he once held way back in the 2011 Jakarta edition where HE spearheaded the Nationals en route to a gold-medal victory.
As of now, Justin Brownlee, Bobby Ray Parks Jr., Ange Kouame, Matthew Wright, Remy Martin, Dave Ildefonso, Jason Brickman, and lone collegiate cager Veejay Pre are the cagers who committed to play for the SEAG and it anticipated to be joined by other players from UAAP, NCAA, or PBA
Brownlee and Kouame, who are leading the pack, got the go signal to play after the SEA Games didn’t push through with its initial plan of adapting the FIBA eligibility rules.
An NCAA Division I standout from Arizona and Kansas, all eyes will be on Martin in his Gilas debut.
Martin played NCAA Division I college basketball, initially with the Arizona State Sun Devils and then transferring to the Kansas Jayhawks, where he won a NCAA National Championship in 2022.
He was a standout player, earning All-Pac-12 selections twice while at Arizona State and being named the NCAA Tournament Midwest Region MOP (Most Outstanding Player) in 2022
There are numerous top players who have expressed their intention to don the tricolors but pulled out due to conflict of schedules with their mother teams.
According to Black, there is no definite schedule yet for the team’s practice with some of the players likely to still be playing in the overseas league.
“The goal is to win the gold medal, and have the players that could represent the country bring their best,” Black continued.
