Marcus Douthit . FILE PHOTO
SEVILLE, Spain—Marcus Douthit admits that he knew right from the start that Andray Blatche is set to take his place in the Gilas Pilipinas team and that his career with the national team is over for all intents and purposes.
“That’s why they got a new guy (Blatche), to erase the doubts,” Douthit told reporters Wednesday night as the possibility of Marcus suiting up for another tour of duty with Gilas Pilipinas for the Asian Games, set to start Sept. 19, is shaping up.
Known as the gentle giant on the court, Douthit is aware of all the talk back in the Philippines doubting his ability to lead the Filipinos in the World Cup here, and in the Asian Games in Incheon, South Korea, mainly because of his age and being injury-prone.
He made it no secret that he wanted to play, but like a true soldier, has done what he’s told.
“I wanted a shot at the Fiba (World Cup), but at the end of the day, it wasn’t my choice,” he said without an ounce of hate. “In a way, it was kind of hard for the guys to play with Andray because of the short period of time (to train).
“Andray has been with us, what, two months max?” Douthit, who acts as one of the ballboys during Gilas warmups, continued. “It took me three years to get to know the guys. But everyone fought. No one has given up. We fought well.”
But with the Blatche eligibility issue dragging on, Douthit could be the PH main man again in the Asiad Games.
The Philippines has not won the Asiad gold in 52 years, and with its campaign here yielding respectable results, many feel that the time is ripe for the Filipinos to again be cage kings of the region.
Aside from Blatche, the status of Gabe Norwood and Jared Dillinger is also being questioned by the Asiad organizing committee. Musong R. Castillo