Blatche, Abueva ‘not in game shape’ ahead of Taipei duel

With still a lot of work to be done, time is not on Gilas Pilipinas’ side with only 10 days left before its duel against rival Chinese Taipei in the third window of the Fiba World Cup Asian Qualifiers.

A major cause for concern is the conditioning of naturalized big man Andray Blatche.

In a report on ESPN5, national team head coach Chot Reyes thinks Blatche is still not in his desired form.

“I don’t think he’s in game shape. Hopefully, we can fast-track him,” Reyes said.

“We got him a six-minute scrimmage [on Monday]. Hopefully, we can get it up to ten minutes and build it up from there. It helps that he got here early and he’s already been working out compared to before when he was injured or was playing with his Chinese team. The good thing about that though was that he was in game shape. This time, he’s not.”

Blatche came to Manila as early as June 9 to prepare for the resumption of the qualifiers where Gilas won two of its first three games.

The former NBA veteran, however, isn’t the only one groping for form.

Reyes said Calvin Abueva is also facing the same predicament.

“Calvin was also struggling in scrimmages,” Reyes said. “He’s not in game shape either. His timing is off and he’s not as sharp as other guys. That’s what not playing does to you.”

Abueva hasn’t played since the PBA All-Star Game in Iloilo on May 27. He has also been suspended indefinitely by the Alaska Aces for going AWOL.