Gilas task heavier: Canadians beef up

Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net

THE PROVERBIAL eye of the needle has just gotten smaller for Gilas Pilipinas.

Needing to win the Manila Olympic Qualifying Tournament to make it back to the Summer Games for the first time in 44 years, Gilas’ task becomes even more formidable with the arrival tomorrow of Canada’s Tristan Thompson for the event that starts tomorrow at Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay.

Though a possible showdown with the Canadians can only happen either in the Final Four or the title game, having the power forward of NBA champion Cleveland Cavaliers surely poses a bigger problem for the Filipinos.

Thompson planed in on Saturday night and became the fifth NBA player in the Canadian lineup after Corey Joseph, Tyler Ennis, Joel Anthony and Anthony Bennett.

With Thompson, the Canadians and the French look to be the teams to beat on paper.

The two squads belong to separate groups, though, which means that the Philippines would need to go through both of them to win the tournament.

Thompson refused to be interviewed.

Andrew Wiggins of Minnesota is the only NBA player to decline joining Team Canada here, electing instead to focus on the next NBA season for the Timberwolves, according to reports.

The NBA’s flashy Rookie of the Year in 2014 with the T-Wolves could have made Canada the solid favorites to win the tournament.

Bennett, like Wiggins, was selected first overall in the NBA Draft—the only Canadians to earn the distinction.

Gilas is bracketed with France and New Zealand and needs to beat at least one of them to advance to the semifinals.

Should the Filipinos do so, they would clash with either World No. 8 Turkey or Canada in the Final Four, depending on how the two countries finish in their own group.

Tournament format calls for the best team from each group to clash with the next best team from the other.

The Filipinos failed to get the measure of Turkey in two recent tuneup games, and the Canadians, again on paper, are decidedly stronger than the Turks.

Gilas’ match against France tips off tomorrow at 9 p.m. with the Europeans parading one of their strongest national squads yet in a bid to keep alive its streak of participation in the Olympics that stretches back to 1948, in London.

Other NBA mainstays seeing action for France are Boris Diaw, Parker’s San Antonio teammate Evan Fournier of the Orlando Magic, Rudy Gobert of the Utah Jazz and Charlotte’s Nicolas Batum.

Turkey and Canada, meanwhile, get the ball rolling in the 6:30 p.m. contest with the winner likely to top their group. African five Senegal is the third squad in the group.