Fiba Asia Cup 2021 Qualifiers

[ja.he]

And oftana haven’t played single game in fiba international to test wether he could actually play 4spot. Ncaa Performance is not just the basis and yet somebody already compared him better with the guy who had failed US ncaa stint.

Well, the NCAA and PCCL games are giving us some glimpse of what exactly Oftana's playing style is.

Oftana is agile and active player. He has some nice perimeter and interior D which is good.

[geohunk]

And yes despite y'all saying Troy is our ONLY legit FIBA level power/stretch 4, he is ONLY 6'4"! And I've seen enough of him on the Asian and World level to say that he is seriously outmatched against top FIBA level teams we have faced! Too soft and too undersized and he is NO RDO or Pingris. Despite whatever people say here that he provides good spacing and offensive flow etcetera....

Troy Rosario 6'4 not 6'5". (Yep that has been our "favored FIBA power forward/small forward):



But again...he keeps getting chosen most likely because of lack of supply and circumstance as well.

[ja.he]

Seriously now..you guys want 6'5" guys like Oftana and Kobe paras to be our FIBA level 4?? They will be eaten alive and we'll be in a rude awakening if people here continue to pursue these two as power forwards on the FIBA World and Asian level!

Just here nalang against in Asia, we are already undersized and being outplayed and outhustled against the other teams PF (4)! Heck even 6,4" Troy had serious matchup problems against these players!

Example of top Asian Team 4s:

N.ZEALAND Tohi Smith Milner 6'9"

You haven't Tall Blacks play, have you? Because I've seen Tall Blacks play, alot. Tohi Smith-Smilner, while playing some 4, is also used as their center.

He is sometimes paired with Isaac Fotu as interchageables at 4/5. He is only used as a 4 when Rob Loe or Alex Pledger is inside.

[ja.he]

Seriously now..you guys want 6'5" guys like Oftana and Kobe paras to be our FIBA level 4?? They will be eaten alive and we'll be in a rude awakening if people here continue to pursue these two as power forwards on the FIBA World and Asian level!

Just here nalang against in Asia, we are already undersized and being outplayed and outhustled against the other teams PF (4)! Heck even 6,4" Troy had serious matchup problems against these players!

Example of top Asian Team 4s:

S.KOREA Jeong Hyo-geun 6'8"

I watched him play against Argentina. He is 6'7 actually. He can't even make a shot against 5'11 Facundo Campazzo because that shorty is quite strong and knows basic defense. Look it up.

[geohunk]

Hoooo boooy....when will we ever learn.

Still falling back on sub 6'4 to 6'5"" power/stretch forwards and sub 6'3" small forwards and wings. Rinse, wash and repeat. Same old cycle for the past 10 years. Pero once we go up against top level FIBA teams we continue to get this philosophy exposed and our butts spanked.

"Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result"

But of course I get it. We don't have a dearth of skilled tall players at the 6'8" and above range who are well rounded enough to play a stretch 4 or a 3 and who can matchup well against those other teams frontlines.

Yeah I get it.

[analyzed]

Context! No one is suggesting Kobe or Oftana to be our only main PF. As of now by default Troy seems to only 4 to compliment AJ, who will split minutes between 4 and 5 spot, even Kai can play a few minutes at 4.
So it's really a question of who can play some spot minutes at 4, now whether that is Troy or someone else is the question. Now for that specific role of small ball 4, I really would rather go with a skilled defense and offensive player like Oftana over an Almazan or Erram. Do note Gilas main weakness isn't really our 4/5 height but our versatility quickness and team play on defense.

Of course it's a no brainer if we had at our disposal a 6'8 guy like all these teams you mentioned (from Iran, China etc)
Like I said we wouldn't even being having this discussion of suggesting Brownlee and Kobe as 4, (which notable coaches have suggested, if we were Iran or China), we're only having this discussion because we're so damn scarce with suitable 4's, that the context! If Hepa, Standhardinger and Ballugkay were eligible this discussion wouldn't be happening!

[geohunk]

This is why I am totally against having Kobe and Oftana play primarily in the 4 spot. Maybe sporadically like for a couple of minutes depending on the situations, but Heck NO will I use them in the power forward spot against top level teams, even if Kai or AJ were manning the Center slot!

As early as now these two should have been utilized as small forwards by their respective college teams, like ALL the time, for them to get comfortable with the position. But that is wishful thinking at this point in time.

[geohunk]

Context! No one is suggesting Kobe or Oftana to be our only main PF. As of now by default Troy seems to only 4 to compliment AJ, who will split minutes between 4 and 5 spot, even Kai can play a few minutes at 4.
So it's really a question of who can play spot some minutes at 4, now whether that is Troy or someone else is the question. Now for that specific role of small ball 4, I really would rather go with a skilled defense and offensive player like Oftana over an Almazan or Erram.
Of course it's a no brainer if we had at our disposal a 6'8 guy like all these teams you mentioned (from Iran, China etc)
Like I said we wouldn't even being having this discussion of suggesting Brownlee and Kobe as 4, (which notable coaches have suggested, if we were Iran or China), we're only having this discussion because we're so damn scarce with suitable 4's, that the context! If Hepa, Standhardinger and Ballugkay were eligible this discussion wouldn't be happening!

Yes I get the context. It just irks me that we are still in the same position as we were 10 to 15 years ago with the lack of good skilled tall players who can play FIBA level 3 and 4. And again I've seen ENOUGH of Troy these past few years with him in Gilas. Sorry but past the SEA level, he just doesn't impress me enough as a 4 at either the ASIAN-OCEANA level or much more the WORLD LEVEL.

No need to remind me of CONTEXT.

[sajubeads]

I watched him play against Argentina. He is 6'7 actually. He can't even make a shot against 5'11 Facundo Campazzo because that shorty is quite strong and knows basic defense. Look it up.

Can Erram and Almazan can handle him defensively? But Kobe and Oftana can do more harm on offense compared to Erram and Almazan...

[ja.he]

Look this way, let's put for Japeth/Junmar, Japeth/Dray, Dray/Junmar tandem. Di ba we are struggling to chase the perimeter and the passes or fight the screens?

Compare that when we put Japeth/Troy, Blatche/Troy, Japeth/RDO, Japeth/Ping, Blatche/RDO, Blatche/Ping, we are definitely doing better defensively because we are moving well.

My point here is that: if only we have enough talents at the 4, we don't improvise. But since we are short of that, we need to improvised the line up and bank on versatility.

How many 6'8 or taller players are versatile enough to play the 4?

Kaya nga, it is better to have 1 big, 3 wings, 1 guard/ 1 big 4 wings na five on the floor because we are banking on versatility and quickness to compensate whatever deficiencies we might have.

We might field two 7 footers but the versatility, especially in defense, might be a suspect.

We are not saying this if there is nothing to support our statements. Latinos and the Kiwis are my prime examples.

[ja.he]

Can Erram and Almazan can handle him defensively? But Kobe and Oftana can do more harm on offense compared to Erram and Almazan...

One-on-one i think they can because Jeong, like most Korean players, are not physically strong. The problem, though, is Korea is not a team that plays iso. Jeong, like a prototypical Korean big, provides off-ball or on-ball screen to free himself up. He also loves to move without the ball.

The probability is not to iso almazan or erram but to get them lost in a series of screens.

In a way, i see as a taller version of Troy Rosario.

[NOiNU]

I am actually not on board with Oftana playing the 4 internationally. With Kobe, at least you have the heft and the strength to body up opposing 4s. Oftana is best utilized as a wing, a playmaking wing. He is adept at the defensive side as well closing out on shooters and outright blocking them. he’s capable of containing smaller guards as well on penetrations. Plus, he is very good in leaking out and his speed would be in full display if he spends more time at the perimeter rather than near the low block and corners.

[ja.he]

I am actually not on board with Oftana playing the 4 internationally. With Kobe, at least you have the heft and the strength to body up opposing 4s. Oftana is best utilized as a wing, a playmaking wing. He is adept at the defensive side as well closing out on shooters and outright blocking them. he’s capable of containing smaller guards as well on penetrations. Plus, he is very good in leaking out and his speed would be in full display if he spends more time at the perimeter rather than near the low block and corners.

I second the motion. I might even put Kobe and Oftana on the five of the floor. Who would not love that?

[NOiNU]

I second the motion. I might even put Kobe and Oftana on the five of the floor. Who would not love that?

Yup, and Aj at the 5 for full complement. Then you run the opponent to the ground.

[ja.he]

Yup, and Aj at the 5 for full complement. Then you run the opponent to the ground.

Then JC and Thirdy at the backcourt. Don't they want this 5? Haha

The power forward slot might be short but versatile and quick to the feet while he has tall guards to back him up.