Clock ticks as Guiao prepares PH team for Fiba qualifiers

Photo by Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net

Rest is for the weak, and national team head coach Yeng Guiao has no time for it.

Just days after leading the Philippines to fifth place in the men’s basketball competition in the 2018 Asian Games, Guiao will be back to work to prepare Gilas Pilipinas for the upcoming fourth window of the Fiba World Cup Asian Qualifiers.

Guiao said preparing the team for the Fiba qualifiers is another hurdle for him as he’s left with less than two weeks to get things together before their game against the Iran national team on September 13 in Tehran.

“This is another hectic schedule and the same problem all over for me because half of the team was replaced and we’ll have one week to train for a very strong team,” said Guiao Saturday at Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Iran is ranked No. 25 in the world while the Philippines is the 30th-best.

What Guiao is most concerned about, though, is building team chemistry with players he has yet to coach.

Guiao’s holdovers from his Asian Games squad are Beau Belga, Raymond Almazan, Gabe Norwood, Stanley Pringle, Poy Erram, Christian Standhardinger, Asi Taulava, and Paul Lee.

Filling up the 14-man pool are San Miguel’s Alex Cabagnot and Marcio Lassiter, Ginebra’s Scottie Thompson, Magnolia’s Ian Sangalang, and Blackwater’s Allein Maliksi.

Phoenix’s Matthew Wright has also been invited since his one-game suspension will be lifted after the game against Iran.

“This is an issue of preparation and issue of familiarity because this is not the team that we brought to the Asian Games plus this is not the core of Rain or Shine,” said Guiao.

Removed from the Asian Games team are Chris Tiu, Maverick Ahanmisi, James Yap, and Jordan Clarkson.