Rivals turned teammates: Greg Slaughter and June Mar Fajardo. —SHERWIN VARDELEON
National coach Yeng Guiao acknowledges the weight of the task ahead of him and his wards when the Philippines takes on Kazakhstan and Iran in the resumption of the Fiba World Cup Asian qualifiers beginning Friday night.
“These are the games that will really matter,” Guiao told reporters on Wednesday ahead of the Filipinos’ homestand which opens against the Kazakhs at MOA Arena in Pasay.
“These are important matches … we will be defined by the games that we will play in the next few days,” he said of their campaign in Group F play.
The Filipinos currently sport a 5-3 win-loss record—still in the key third place that guarantees a slot to the Fiba World Cup, but Guiao won’t leave anything to chance, especially with Japan breathing down the Filipinos’ necks in the standings.
And with Guiao finally having the marquee big men of the PBA, San Miguel Beer’s reigning four-time MVP June Mar Fajardo and Barangay Ginebra’s Greg Slaughter, the national coach opted for the services of guard Stanley Pringle—who torched Kazakhstan in the Asian Games—as naturalized player.
While Fajardo has been a regular in the Gilas program, Slaughter will join the Nationals for the first time since the 2010 Asian Games.
But a glut of big men won’t guarantee victory for the Philippines.
“We will be in trouble if their three-point shooting is on target,” Guiao said of the Kazakhstan game, which tips off at 7:30 p.m. “Their guards are deadly three-point shooters. Give them a small window, they could shoot.”
Guiao, who officially took over the coaching chores earlier this month, said the squad hoped to ride the momentum of its victory over Kazakhstan during the Asiad.
The Nationals then take on the Iranians on Dec. 3 at the same venue looking to avenge a sound beating they absorbed in Tehran during their first meeting.