Gilas Pilipinas is in a race against time to whip up a gold medal–winning squad for the upcoming Southeast Asian (SEA) Games in Thailand, as 5×5 SEA Games basketball starts on December 13. That means between now, December 5, and Gilas Pilipinas’ first game in Thailand on December 13, Norman Black will have eight days to turn a ragtag, hastily assembled team into one that can win the gold medal and reaffirm the country’s mastery in 5×5 SEA Games basketball. With this Norman Black–led Gilas starting practice on December 1, they would be getting 12 days of preparation for the biennial meet.
If it’s any consolation, Black won’t be short on talent given the lineup he has now:
- Ray Parks
- Matthew Wright
- Thirdy Ravena
- Jamie Malonzo
- Robert Bolick
- Von Pessumal
- Veejay Pre
- Abu Tratter
- Dalph Panopio
- Ced Manzano
- Justin Chua
- Allen Liwag
Flip-Flopping Eligibility Rules in SEA Games Basketball
To be fair, it isn’t entirely Black’s or anyone’s fault that the Philippines is once again in a race against time in preparing a winning team. Black and the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas had formed a team already as early as October, with naturalized players Justin Brownlee and Ange Kouame as the cornerstones, along with highly touted veteran internationalist Jason Brickman, and former U.S. NCAA Division I standout Remy Martin.
However, the Thailand SEA Games organizing committee has repeatedly flip-flopped on the eligibility rules covering 5×5 SEA Games basketball, first saying it would adopt the passport-only rule before adopting FIBA requirements. But the organizers later banned naturalized players, effectively sidelining Brownlee and Kouame. What’s more, the Thais basically banned Michael Phillips and Brandon Ganuelas-Rosser, who had been previously named to the team at an earlier date, even though both have played for Gilas in SEA Games basketball before.
All these changes in eligibility rules essentially put Black in a bind, and he is now left with little time to whip up a winning team. Thankfully, it looks like he has enough talent to work with even without Brownlee, Kouame, Phillips, Martin, Brickman, and Ganuelas-Rosser.
Then again, with all this flip-flopping, it might be wise for Norman Black and the rest of Gilas to expect more “black” magic from Thailand.
