Rosario practices but likely out of Gilas lineup vs Australia, Japan

Photo by Tristan Tamayo/ INQUIRER.net

Gilas Pilipinas coach Chot Reyes isn’t willing to roll the dice as he virtually ruled Troy Rosario out for the February window of the 2019 Fiba World Cup Asian qualifiers.

“He’s cleared to practice, but he’s really not cleared to play,” Reyes said on Tuesday. “He’s cleared to do some light workouts, shooting drills, but not really full contact. We’re not keeping our hopes up high for him to be able to join the team.”

The 26-year-old Rosario attended practice on Tuesday at Meralco Gym, his first on court appearance after suffering a bad fall in TNT’s game against Phoenix on Wednesday, but could only watch his teammates during the scrimmage.

His potential absence is an additional blow to the Gilas frontline, which already lost Raymond Almazan and Calvin Abueva after Reyes dropped them from consideration for the February window last month.

Though the situation was tough, Rosario understood the precaution and accepted his fate given his health status.

“The team knows my situation so I’m just practicing, doing shooting. I still can’t participate in scrimmages because anytime that I feel dizzy, it might be dangerous,” he said. “The neurologists advised that I could only do light practices for three days before we can assess my situation.”

Rosario did promise to make his presence felt by showing up to every Gilas practice, an evidence of his unwavering dedication to the program.

“I’ll attend our practices everyday. [TNT] has a game tomorrow, but I’ll still go here first before I go to the game,” he said.