MANILA, Philippines — Asahan ang mas mabagsik ng Gilas Pilipinas sa susunod na mga laban nito.
Ito ang nakikita ni Gilas Pilipinas head coach Tim Cone matapos ang kampanya ng kanyang tropa sa nakaraang 2024 FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament sa Riga, Latvia.
Partikular na tinukoy nito ang solidong kumbinasyon nina seven-time PBA MVP June Mar Fajardo at Kai Sotto.
“You can see they built their game plan there by doubling Fajardo, as if he’s playting in the PBA, even if we were playing seven-footers,” ani Cone.
Dahil sa solidong laro ni Fajardo kasama pa si naturalized player Justin Brownlee ay nahirapan nang husto ang mga karibal ng Gilas Pilipinas.
Sa katunayan ay ginulantang ng Gilas Pilipinas ang World No. 6 Latvia sa group stage ng torneo.
“He was more than holding his own and I think coaches, when they play against him, outside Justin of course, what can they do with June Mar? They know they can’t handle June Mar one-on-one, because he’s a dominant force,” ani Cone.
Solido rin ang laro ni Sotto na nagiging mabagsik na sa bawat laro ng Gilas Pilipinas.
“The fact he (Fajardo) can play with Kai, that kind of put them in quandary with other teams, because who do you put on?” wika ni Cone.
Nagtala si Fajardo ng 11 points, 5 rebounds at 3 steals sa 89-80 panalo ng Gilas kontra sa Latvia.
Humataw naman si Sotto ng 18 points at 8 boards.
“If you can just envision these two players playing comfortably with each other and then add AJ Edu and keep these two fresh, if you can envision that these guys getting better in system and play better with each other, how good can they become?” dagdag sabi ni Cone.