Scottie Thompson out, Juan Gomez De Liaño in.
On Friday, the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas announced that Gomez De Liaño, who played in the second window earlier this year, has replaced Thompson in the Gilas 12 headed to Oceania for window three of the FIBA World Cup Asian Qualifiers.
Thompson, the newly minted PBA Commissioner’s Cup Finals MVP, has been dealing with a problematic right hamstring ever since the start of Barangay Ginebra San Miguel’s championship series against the TNT Tropang 5G. He struggled for most of the Finals but submitted a triple-double of 17 points, 11 rebounds, and 11 assists in a Game 3 win, and a near triple-double of 19 points, 11 rebounds, and 8 assists in Ginebra’s championship clincher in Game 7.
Gomez De Liaño, meanwhile, missed several games in the midseason tourney after sustaining a deep bone bruise in his right knee early in the conference. He has since recovered but could not lead the Converge FiberXers into the playoffs after a rough start.
Gomez De Liaño Adds Scoring, But Gilas Loses Defense
This late swap is a classic offense-for-defense trade-off. Gomez De Liaño is one of the best young scorers in local hoops at the point guard position, and he figures to give Gilas additional firepower. A 37.5% shooter from deep, JGDL can also break down defenses and set up teammates off the dribble.
Gilas, however, loses one of its better defenders with Thompson’s omission. While the one-time PBA MVP has mostly struggled knocking down shots in FIBA play, he has brought fierce, unyielding defense—both on the ball and within Tim Cone’s system.
The national team also loses the intangibles Thompson brings, from hustle, to rebounding, to his deep knowledge of Cone’s methods and principles.
JGDL’s Time to Shine?
At least for now, the ball is in Gomez De Liaño’s court. He and fellow KBL standout RJ Abarrientos will man the point, especially with Cjay Perez also out of the Gilas 12.
JGDL and Abarrientos will, for sure, be challenged defensively by the souped-up backcourts of both New Zealand and Australia. But they can even out the battlefield by providing Gilas that offensive punch it needs outside of Justin Brownlee, Dwight Ramos, and Kevin Quiambao.
Whether they can do it remains to be seen.
