The Smart Gilas Philippine National team is now 2 - 1 in their FIBA Asia Cup campaign in Tokyo, Japan thanks to solid plays from Marcus Douthit, L.A. Tenorio, Gary David and Jeff Chan, among others. Having watched the first two games, it seems coach Chot is sticking to a rotation of 8 to 9 players. Enrico Villanueva, Matthew Rosser, Jay-R Reyes and Sonny Thoss have barely seen action either because they are still unproven in international court or their skills just do not match up well with opponents.
While the team have done good and will most likely make it to quarterfinals, some of its players can very well use some upgrade. Imagine if the team is composed of the players on the right, as opposed to the actual delegates on the left:
| Point Guards: | ||
| L.A. Tenorio | L.A. Tenorio | |
| Matthew Rosser | JV Casio | |
| Jason Castro | ||
| Shooting Guards: | ||
| Gary David | Gary David | |
| Jeff Chan | Larry Fonacier | |
| Sol Mercado | ||
| Small Forwards: | ||
| Larry Fonacier | Gabe Norwood | |
| Jared Dillinger | Arwind Santos | |
| Power Forwards: | ||
| Ranidel De Ocampo | Mark Pingris | |
| Gabe Norwood | Kelly Williams | |
| Centers: | ||
| Marcus Douthit | Marcus Douthit | |
| Enrico Villanueva | Ranidel De Ocampo | |
| Jay-R Reyes | ||
| Sonny Thoss |
No disrespect to the current squad here, but clearly, they need additional depth in at least two positions - point guard and center. The country has always been short of right-sized centers, but never a point guard. That's why it baffles me how the only pure point guard in the line-up is Tenorio. Alapag and Castro are nursing injuries, and Sol Mercado who can play point has citizenship issues with FIBA rules.
I find it most disappointing that Casio and Pingris was not able to join. Casio is well on the rise to be a prime point guard and can relieve a lot of burden on Tenorio. Pingris brings in the hussle and can compensate for the team's lack of height. De Ocampo can also slide in on center to give Douthit some rest. I know some players on my dream squad is playing out of position, but they can spread the court well and can play on both offense and defense. There are more experienced and popular players that is not on my list, mainly because I don't think they'd fit in well with a team-first approach and international play.
Being the best national team ever assembled as declared is pretty arguable right now, but these guys never lacked the guts to and heart to fight regardless of who their opponents are. We just have to hope it's enough to bring the gold, only then will the claim be proven.
