Gilas Pilipinas 3×3 standout Alvin Pasaol knows Filipinos can stack up with some of the elite countries in the world in terms of talent.
But Pasaol acknowledged that cohesion is just as essential in the country’s bid to qualify for the Tokyo Olympics next year.
That’s why Pasaol is also hoping that he gets as much time sharing the court with Chooks-to-Go 3×3 teammates Joshua Munzon and PBA players Mo Tautuaa and CJ Perez in the coming months as they prepare for the Olympic qualifying tournament (OQT) in Graz, Austria, from May 26 to 30 next year.
“I think we were able to develop that understanding as teammates because we know 3×3 is different than 5-on-5,” Pasaol said during the Philippine Sportswriters Association Forum webcast on Tuesday.
The Filipinos were actually playing against a team of Serbian players in preparation for the 20-team OQT, which was supposed to be in India in March. Fiba postponed the tournament to next year due to the coronavirus pandemic
.Tournament commissioner Eric Altamirano hopes to sit down with the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas and the PBA to maximize the added time the country has to prepare for the event. INQ