Cure Gilas please, before nurturing it

ONE YOUNG television journalist wanted to know what should be done with the Gilas Pilipinas basketball program.

“Good morning, this is Tina of 9TV (Solar New Channel). We’re doing a research. What do you think happened with the Gilas Pilipinas team?

Didn’t you see?

“What do you think of the program?”

It’s, at best, an imperfect theater, it drew a lot of cheers, but it also crushed countless hearts.

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She begged for recommendations, as though this entire basketball loving nation had not ended with a critical diagnosis of the national team.

“Should they go on and pursue the Gilas program?”

Please. The Gilas program needs to be cured, before it is nurtured.

“What really went wrong? Didn’t its backers say the program will stay in order to shoot for a slot in the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics”

Our interviewer was told that this reporter had had an extensive one-on-one with one of their staffers the day before, wherein it was detailed what went wrong. There should be changes, possibly a revamp. In fact, the PBA itself, main supplier of players to the national squad, has hinted it would bat for a change in the selection process, and would try and go for an objective, more democratic system of forming the national team.

* * *

Unfortunately, the call for changes and improvement was also interpreted by some as a slur on Philippine team coach Chot Reyes and his main benefactor, the respected tycoon Manny V. Pangilinan.

Repeat: We will continue supporting Mr. Pangilinan and his programs.

Some fans will not believe this, but this reporter was slammed by his old friend, the esteemed boxing expert Hermie Rivera, when we called the Gilas Pilipinas team stint in the Fiba World Cup in Spain, “scintillating.”

We honestly felt the Gilas Pilipinas team performed well enough for the country to gain a measure of respect in world basketball.

* * *

How Gilas tripped in its first assignment against Iran in the Incheon Asiad, before going on a downward spiral in its next three games in Incheon, was a stunner to team supporters, and also an eye-opener to more concerned Filipino basketball diehards.

This reporter said Gilas Pilipinas in the Asiad was poorly trained and poorly coached.

We stand by this observation.

There were crucial mistakes, mainly in the very sentitive area of pacing, that clearly caused the debacle in Incheon.

Let the Gilas program go on. But at the same time, we pray that it first be put in its proper footing.

This should help save Gilas Pilipinas from slipping into total irrelevance.