PH joins Taiwan, Jordan and Saudi in Group A in Fiba Asia Championships

MANILA, Philippines – With the luxury of picking 13th in the draw for the Fiba Asia Championships as the host country, Smart Gilas Pilipinas chose to be bracketed in group A.

The Philippines, which is hoping to snag seats for the Fiba tournament next year, joined Jordan, Chinese Taipei and Saudi Arabia in group A.

Coaches Norman Black and Nash Racela, part of the Smart Gilas’ coaching staff, represented the country in the draw held at the Manila Hotel on Thursday.

The entire Smart Gilas squad, including national team head coach Chot Reyes, are in Lithuania as part of their build-up for the Fiba Asia championships in August here.

Two years ago, Smart Gilas Pilipinas finished fourth under Serbian coach Rajko Toroman – the country’s best since the 1987 version of the tournament.

Meanwhile, powerhouse nations China, South Korea, Iran along with another Southeast Asian country, which is yet to be determined, wound up group C, which appears to the toughest among the brackets or the “group of death.”

Hong Kong, Japan, Qatar and Lebanon were bracketed in Group B while Kazakhstan, India, Bahrain and another country from our region were drafted in group D.