Rosser, Slaughter out of Gilas pool for Olympic qualifiers
Greg Slaughter (far left) and Matthew Ganuelas Rosser (far right) are out of the Gilas Pool. Photo by Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net
Gilas Pilipinas will head into the Fiba Olympic Qualifying Tournament smaller and without another versatile winger.
Center Greg Slaughter and swing man Matt Ganuelas-Rosser are out of the pool from which head coach Tab Baldwin will select his final 12-man lineup in the July tournament.
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Both Slaughter and Rosser are out of the running for the final roster due to injuries.
“Greg had a scan and he has some ligament issues in his ankle. He is no longer part of the pool. He’s a part of Gilas because all these guys are, but he’s no longer an option for the OQT,” said Baldwin Wednesday at Meralco Gym.
“Matt has had surgery for an ankle issue that arose, I think in an offseason injury and he’s out of the pool.”
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Slaughter was present during the practice and just watched from the sidelines but he left before the session ended. Rosser, meanwhile, did not attend.
Slaughter’s role for Gilas could have been one of the center spots, as the seven-footer would trade places with defending PBA MVP June Mar Fajardo during games.
Rosser, for his part, is one of the more versatile players in the Philippines as he could play the one through three positions depending on the five-man lineup Baldwin would use.
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“Every player that is under my responsibility that has an injury is a concern. I’m concerned for them as people, for their careers, for their opportunities,” Baldwin said.
“I’m concerned that they can’t realize their ambitions to be part of Gilas this year. But they move on, I move on and I told them that if they want to be here, help out in trainings any way they can, do rehab with us, they’re our players. They’re not excluded in any way other than by injury.”
