Philippines Senior National Team Thread Vol. V

[IPC2]

Kouame 4/5
Lepalam 4/5
Erram 4/5
Baltazar 3/4
Tamayo 3/4

This is a good tall and versatile froncourt.



Navarro 3/4
Oftana 3/4
Paras 3/4
Javi 3/4
Parks 2/3
Ramos 2/3
Credo 2/3
Dave 2/3
Thirdy 2/3

Our options at the forward and swingman positions.

This is an exciting time. The best thing is, there might be other potentially versatile kids in those height ranges that are not yet in the team. Hopefully they get discovered and invited to the Gilas pool eventually.

However, as exciting as I find our newfound two-way versatility to be, it will have to win consistently in order for that versatility to stay with us. I hope we do win, though, and I'm feeling pretty confident this upcoming WC qualifiers. The Asia Cup will be the real test, though.

I only hope that our versatile guys are available for at least the main tournament, and are with teams that are willing to lend them for that tournament.

 

[IPC2]

Any pocket tournaments they can join? Thinking about it with how they performed in the King Abdullah Cup I’m not sure how far they’ll go in the Asia Cup.

I think there's a Dubai tournament in January. Hope that pushes through, and that Gilas can participate. There's a problem in that it might coincide with a window, however.

There might be another King's Cup, but that's after the FIBA Asia Cup.

 

[mathematicianrcg2]

And our tall players in Gilas, especially in the frontline, are matching the previous iteration in terms of talent.

Our 3-4-5 corps once consisted of Gabe, RDO, Ping, Japeth, Blatche, and June Mar, with Abueva and Troy being added. Now, we have Navarro, Dwight, Tamayo, Baltazar, Kouame, Kai, and Go, plus Oftana and Javi.

I think the frontline talent of this Gilas version can match, even exceed that of 2013-15, and it's probably already a match right now. And they're already tall without sacrificing much quickness, and still have room to grow.

Yeah. And we are still have players under our sleeves.

Now for Guards position.

The Talent(Both scoring and playmaking) of Castro, Alapag, and Tenorio will be hard to exceed.( Even if they are small)

Best Candidates would be Kiefer and Bolick, and then maybe Juan and Dalph.

 

[IPC2]

That Seven kid was already in coach TB's radar, it's just a matter of time when will it be...stay tune.

This is great news if he is indeed in Tab's radar. I hope he does end up in the Gilas pool. He looks like an intriguing bigman prospect with the way he's developing and training.

I hope the Tab's radar part is true.

 

[IPC2]

What matters more is the collective height in the bigmen position. That's what it is nowadays.

Last satuday, Zhou Qi got injured but China had a handful of bigmen to punish smaller Japan. That's what talent depth is all about.

Very much agree. Depth is really a must for a team. Under normal or usual circumstance having a reliable & competent starting five would be enough but in circumstances like injury to a key player (like what happened to Zhou Qui) or a key player gets into foul trouble or getting ejected for a technical foul or a key player having an off night, that is when having a deep bench would count a lot.

Also, in the China-Japan 2-game series, it showed the importance of having a skilled 7-foot center in a team. So who's saying that tall centers with traditional skill set are already passe in modern day basketball? I have maintained that in Asian basketball level a skilled & good size center like a Wang Zhizhi or a Yao Ming or a Hamed Hadadi or a Ahmed Al-Dwairi would still be a big plus factor specially when facing a team with smaller/shorter centers or centers with inferior skills.

In as much as everybody believes that one very important factor for success in "world" level basketball is having good size & highly skilled small forwards & "stretch-fours" with wingmen skills, I still strongly believe that in "Asian" level basketball, mas may impact pa rin yung having a very skilled 7-foot center in the mold of a Wang Zhizhi, a Yao Ming, a Hamed Haddadi, Zhou Qui or an Ahmed Al Dwairi. Let's face it, apart from Yuta Watanabe & Rui Hachimura (and maybe 2 or 3 more players), there aren't any Asian small forwards & stretch-fours out there who are skilled, big & athletic enough to excel in the "world" level.

In Philippine basketball for instance, Baltazar, Tamayo, Will Navarro, Dwight Ramos, Kobe Paras, may be good enough for the Asian level but in the world level, these players would just be very averaged or at best, slightly above averaged players. Believe me when I say that si Kai Sotto (I'm referring to a Kai Sotto reaching his peak) pa rin ang magiging sandalan natin both in Asian & world level basketball. Kai would still be the difference maker for Gilas. Let's face it, we won't be having players in the mold of a Hachimura or Watanabe anytime soon. What would we be having in the near future would be a highly skilled 7-foot-2 player in Kai Sotto whom I expect to be within the level of a Wang Zhizhi, Hamed Haddadi, Zhou Qui & Ahmed Al Dwairi.

Kai would be our difference maker & not the highly skilled, athletic & good size small forwards & stretch-4's (of world level) that unfortunately doesn't exist in Phi basketball at this moment.

Hopefully we have the roster to challenge for that. We have Kai and Kouame to man the post. The key to our success will be our bigs. Kai, Kouame, and even our post-operators at the 4 spot, which are Tamayo and Baltazar. That is going to be our edge. For us to succeed, our fours and fives need to be fed.

 

[JAMSKIE2]

Parang tahimik yata ang Gilas bubble training so far. There's hardly any news about what has been going on there since the resumption of their training. Hope its one indication that everybody is just too focus on training & there are no hitches.

 

[IPC2]

I'm interested to see how Lepalam is developing. At least Benilde was kind enough to let him go to the Gilas training pool. Kahit training man lang. If he has a high ceiling, he'd be a great get for Gilas. He's 6'9", looks kinda mobile, and can play both 4 and 5. If he can develop some perimeter defense, even just for PnR, he'll be a great asset.

Go is also practicing his jumper. However, I do hope that he also works on his post game, so at least he can add more value outside of his 3-point shooting. Toughness and defense too.

I also hope Chiu is progressing well. He could be a good two way threat if developed well.

Man, I hope Danny Ildefonso can train these guys to have at least some skill in the block.

 

[ja.he2]

I'm interested to see how Lepalam is developing. At least Benilde was kind enough to let him go to the Gilas training pool. Kahit training man lang. If he has a high ceiling, he'd be a great get for Gilas. He's 6'9", looks kinda mobile, and can play both 4 and 5. If he can develop some perimeter defense, even just for PnR, he'll be a great asset.

Go is also practicing his jumper. However, I do hope that he also works on his post game, so at least he can add more value outside of his 3-point shooting. Toughness and defense too.

I also hope Chiu is progressing well. He could be a good two way threat if developed well.

Man, I hope Danny Ildefonso can train these guys to have at least some skill in the block.

I want Geo to be the 6'10 version of Dennis Espino - when he gives a hard screen, sigurado burado ka.

 

[IPC2]

I want Geo to be the 6'10 version of Dennis Espino - when he gives a hard screen, sigurado burado ka.

He has two things going for him. He has a good attitude, and he's not soft. Hopefully he can get Espino's post game and maybe even his midrange shot.

 

[thatweirdguy2]

I want Geo to be the 6'10 version of Dennis Espino - when he gives a hard screen, sigurado burado ka.

Even boxing out, screens, giving hard fouls etc lang. Things Kai cannot afford to do. Be a Robin Lopez or Varejao.

 

[yogaflame2]

Will Gilas join the PBA governors cup this December? They need this for training. Pandemic will make it hard to train oversees.

 

[yogaflame2]

So far they have a joint practice w/ TNT.. that's a good sign..

That is a good sign. They need this especially our naturalize player Kuoame. He needs allot of exposure from tough competition since he is still not playing professional basketball game and still stuck in UAAP college game.

 

[JAMSKIE2]

I'm interested to see how Lepalam is developing. At least Benilde was kind enough to let him go to the Gilas training pool. Kahit training man lang. If he has a high ceiling, he'd be a great get for Gilas. He's 6'9", looks kinda mobile, and can play both 4 and 5. If he can develop some perimeter defense, even just for PnR, he'll be a great asset.

Go is also practicing his jumper. However, I do hope that he also works on his post game, so at least he can add more value outside of his 3-point shooting. Toughness and defense too.

I also hope Chiu is progressing well. He could be a good two way threat if developed well.

Man, I hope Danny Ildefonso can train these guys to have at least some skill in the block.

I say a very prudent move by St. Benilde to let Lepalam join Gilas training. Imagine the improvement/development Lepalam would get training under a brilliant international coach like Tab Baldwin. Also imagine the privilege of Lepalam training/playing with & against the best amateur players in Phi basketball right now.

Of course there's the risk of Lepalam getting injured while on training with Gilas. But the thing is, every basketball player risks getting injured once he steps in the court. Ika nga eh, kung masyado kang takot ma injure, mag jackstones ka nalang.

 

[yogaflame2]

I want Geo to be the 6'10 version of Dennis Espino - when he gives a hard screen, sigurado burado ka.

I have high hopes for Geo. i hope he turns into a 6'10 version of JP Erram. He has potential since he is still young and has the physique and skills. Erram was not that good in college, but he was trained well in PBA and became a better player with defense and three point shooting.

 

[Rodbi2]

I have high hopes for Geo. i hope he turns into a 6'10 version of JP Erram. He has potential since he is still young and has the physique and skills. Erram was not that good in college, but he was trained well in PBA and became a better player with defense and three point shooting.

He's got his work cut out for him if he's aspiring to have skills/playstyle like Erram's. Good thing is time's on his side but still, he's gotta start working on his game now. He should loose the baby fats and get leaner to help him gain more athleticism and become more agile. He's gonna be something else if he pans out.

 

[thatweirdguy2]

I have high hopes for Geo. i hope he turns into a 6'10 version of JP Erram. He has potential since he is still young and has the physique and skills. Erram was not that good in college, but he was trained well in PBA and became a better player with defense and three point shooting.

Erram though played behind great Cs and was riddled with injury.. he was surprisingly tall and athletic for his position especially against undersized locals ( he was playing against FSAs in college)

 

[IPC2]

Erram though played behind great Cs and was riddled with injury.. he was surprisingly tall and athletic for his position especially against undersized locals ( he was playing against FSAs in college)

Yeah, he had quickness, enough to play the PF, even this season at 32, as seen with TNT, where he guarded Arwind Santos while Kelly guarded June Mar. Man, Blackwater could have had a twin towers combo with Erram and a Commissioner's Cup import in the PBA without sacrificing that much quickness at the 4 spot. Additionally, he could have had opportunities earlier. He could have had a higher upside had he gotten his opportunity earlier.

I also think I see the same issue with Japeth, although it's harder considering his issues with basketball IQ.

 

[IPC2]

JAPAN sent a relatively tall team to the FIBA U19 WC, average height is 6'5. And with more than a couple of mixed-race players, which will be the norm now in Japan Basketball NT

#5 Java Eo YONEYAMA 191cm / 6'3"
# 7 Yu KIBAYASHI 203cm / 6'8" (Tallest player_
#11 John HARPER JR 183cm / 6'0" (Point Guard)
#15 Bruce KANNO 195cm / 6'5"
#16 Yuto YAMANOUCHI 204cm / 6'8"
#17 Ibu YAMAZAKI 200cm / 6'7"


Japan lost to Senegal - 76 -71 on their first game

Java Eo YONEYAMA 191cm / 6'3"

^
wow. for Japan. the pipeline is there... this will just continue... with the players they churn out, ( volume of players developed is really a good indicator )

That is why our recent Gilas team is a breath of fresh air , in the right direction

And I hope Gilas continues in this right direction. We already have local talents that are tall and good enough to be able to play the SF and PF positions, to add to the ones we already have for Gilas.

We will have some versatility on our side, and will continue to do so. As for the bigs, they may be versatlie, have a post game, or maybe both. These are exciting times.

 

[mathematicianrcg2]

And I hope Gilas continues in this right direction. We already have local talents that are tall and good enough to be able to play the SF and PF positions, to add to the ones we already have for Gilas.

We will have some versatility on our side, and will continue to do so. As for the bigs, they may be versatlie, have a post game, or maybe both. These are exciting times.

yeah. 2023 is approaching fast.

2022 will be a big year of development for national team. Even if some of ur key players are overseas and will be not available.

 

[IPC2]

yeah. 2023 is approaching fast.

2022 will be a big year of development for national team. Even if some of ur key players are overseas and will be not available.

I hope more U19 teenagers will be invited to the Gilas pool. We're qualified anyway, so might as well think of inviting high-upside prospects that will look to play beyond 2023 and even 2027.