Gilas awaits Blatche for SEABA tourney

MANILA, Philippines - While Gilas will practice with a full lineup for only 10 days before the start of the coming SEABA Championships, there’s a big chance that at least naturalized player Andray Blatche may arrive by next weekend to acclimatize early for the FIBA Asia Cup qualifying tournament set at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on May 12-18.

Blatche, 30, is now playing for the Xinjiang Flying Tigers in the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) best-of-seven finals against the Guangdong Southern Tigers. Last Friday, Xinjiang took Game 1, 122-105, with Blatche compiling 22 points and five assists. Game 2 is set tonight at the Hongshan Arena in Urumpi, Xinjiang. Game 3 on Wednesday and Game 4 on Friday will be played at the Dongguan Basketball Center, Guangdong. If necessary, Game 7 will be on April 16.

Blatche is averaging 22.8 points, 10.8 rebounds, 3.8 assists, 2.2 steals and 1.4 blocked shots with Xinjiang this season. The Flying Tigers topped the regular season with a 32-6 record then disposed of Shandong, 3-1, in the first round of the playoffs and Liaoning, 4-1, in the semifinals. Aside from Blatche, Xinjiang coach Li Qiuping’s other reliables are Darius Adams and Chinese national players Li Gen and Zhou Qi. Guangdong finished the regular season behind Xinjiang with a 30-8 mark. The Southern Tigers are led by NBA veterans Carlos Boozer, Donald Sloan and Yi Jianlian.

Only the winner of the SEABA Championships will qualify for the FIBA Asia Cup in Beirut on Aug. 10-20. Seven teams are vying for the lone ticket. The tournament will feature a single round-robin format with no playoff. The team with the best record at the end of the round-robin competition is declared the champion.

The Philippines opens its campaign against Myanmar on May 12 then takes on Singapore on May 13, Malaysia on May 14, Thailand on May 16, Vietnam on May 17 and Indonesia on May 18. Rest day for Gilas will be on May 15. It’s expected that Indonesia will provide the stiffest opposition for the Philippines. Indonesia took the silver in basketball at the Southeast Asian Games in 2001, 2007 and 2015 and was second in SEABA in 2005, 2007, 2009 and 2011. 

Of the 11 previous SEABA Championships since 1994, the Philippines has won seven titles but did not participate in 2005 and 2013. Malaysia won in 1994 and 2005, Indonesia in 1996 and Thailand in 2013. The Philippines has swept the last seven tournaments it joined. Brunei, Cambodia, Laos and Timor-Leste are the SEABA countries not playing in this year’s competition.

Indonesia will be bannered by 6-5 naturalized player Jamarr Johnson who won the Rookie of the Year and regular season and playoffs MVP awards in the Indonesian league this campaign. Coach Wahya Widayat Jati formed the national pool of 15 last November and the team has since been practicing for the SEABA tournament. Last January, Gilas assistant coach Jong Uichico flew to Indonesia to scout the national team playing against CLS Knights Surabaya and Pacific Caesar Surabaya in a pair of tune-ups.

While in Indonesia, Uichico reported that former FEU import Anthony Hargrove was with the national team as a back-up naturalized player. Uichico said Johnson played in the tune-up with CLS Knights Surabaya but sat out the game against Pacific Caesar Surabaya, probably because the coaching staff found out he was in the stands to scout. Other players to watch in the Indonesian team are 6-foot Fil-Indonesian former UE guard and PBA D-League veteran Ebrahim Enguio-Lopez, 6-7 center Christian Renaldo Sitepu, 5-9 point guard Mario Wuysang of US NCAA Division II school Fort Wayne, 6-2 Oki Sanjaya and 6-2 Sandy Kumiawan.

Indonesia magnate Erick Thohir, a member of the FIBA Central Board like SBP chairman emeritus Manny V. Pangilinan, has pulled no punches to strengthen the national team in anticipation of the 2018 Asian Games which Jakarta will host. The Philippines, Indonesia and possibly, Japan, are forming an alliance to bid for the hosting rights of the 2023 FIBA World Cup in a multi-nation consortium.