CAGAYAN DE ORO—The final tryouts for Gilas Pilipinas’ 12-man Southeast Asian Basketball Association lineup starts Wednesday when the National pool—some of its members, at least—battles a Mindanao All-Star squad when the annual PBA All-Star Week opens at Xavier University Gym here.
National team shoo-in and three-time reigning PBA MVP June Mar Fajardo banners an 11-man Gilas lineup that will battle Mindanao in the 7:30 p.m. contest, a game that is not only being held for the fans from far away to enjoy but also for coach Chot Reyes to have an idea on who his players will be.
The Seaba is a vital tournament for the Philippines to win as it would qualify the Filipinos to take part in the Fiba Asian Championship where World Cup slots will be staked.
“This is the last full practice that we will have because after the All-Stars, it will be [Seaba] week already,” Reyes said before departing for this Northern Mindanao frontier on Tuesday. “After this week, we’ll have the Final 12, and we already have some names in mind.
“But again, we’re going to use Wednesday and Friday as the final test to figure out who will make that lineup,” Reyes said.
This season’s All-Star Week will have a truly different format as Gilas clashes with the Luzon All-Stars in Lucena on Friday after which Reyes announces his final roster.
That roster will then play the Visayas All-Stars in Cebu City on Sunday.
Former Nationals Moala Tautuaa, Troy Rosario and Sonny Thoss spearhead the Mindanao squad, which will see ex-NCAA rivals Scottie Thompson and Jio Jalalon play together for the first time.
“This is not just an All-Star Game, it’s our way of helping Gilas,” Thompson, the efficient sophomore from Barangay Ginebra out of Perpetual Help, said after touching down here and joining the rest of the team in a meet-and-greet session.
“We’re here to give them a good fight for their preparation [for the Seaba],” Thompson continued in Filipino. “It’s a big deal for us being able to help them in their preparations.”
“I am very happy because we are going to get the chance to help Gilas,” Mindanao coach Chito Victolero, who handles Star, said.
Mindanao will have just one practice slated on Tuesday, but Victolero feels that his boys will be up to the task.
“On playing skill, they’re all the same considering that they are all playing in the PBA,” he said.
Joining Fajardo at Gilas will be Terrence Romeo, LA Revilla, Mike Tolomia, RR Pogoy, Matthew Wright, Kevin Ferrer, Carl Cruz, Al Gotladera and Bradwyn Guinto.
The game will be preceded by the Shooting Stars event.
Meanwhile, the Obstacle Challenge, which will be supported by Cloudfone, will happen on Friday at Quezon Convention Center in Lucena with Rain or Shine’s Maverick Ahanmisi seeking to become the fourth player to win the event back-to-back.