Gilas explores alternatives to Jones Cup

MANILA, Philippines – To fill up its supposed Jones Cup stint, Smart Gilas will play either in the United States, Europe or Australia, or invite a foreign team to come over to help the national team prepare for the 2013 FIBA Asia Championship in August.

"We’re contacting all our contacts. We’re exploring all options. We’ve lost seven to eight games that we should be playing in the Jones Cup. We need to get alternative games for our team,” Gilas team manager Butch Antonio told The STAR.

“We’ll keep on throwing feelers. If we get positive response, we’ll take a look at that,” Antonio also said. “The ideal is to play teams or a team stronger than us. The stronger the better.”

Gilas will inquire whether they can play in a summer league in the United States.

“I think it’s easy to put up a team in the US to play us. But we don’t want that. We want to play a real team. We want real, competitive team,” Antonio said.

Gilas may also take a look at doing the same thing done by coach Tim Cone’s Philippine Centennial team in 1998, touring the US Midwest for a series of games against top collegiate teams including Iowa, Missouri, Missouri-Kansas City, Tulsa, Wichita and Minnesota.

“The question is whether it’s still open season to do that,” said the amiable Gilas team manager.

Already confirmed is Gilas’ series of “friendlies” with Japan in Tokyo before the Japanese leave for Taipei for the Jones Cup.

“If we can’t find a tourney anywhere, we can invite a foreign team over, then we play a series of tune-ups. We really need to fill the games we’ll miss in the Jones Cup,” Antonio said.

“The thing is that we’re left not just un-invited in the Jones Cup. They put in disarray our preparation,” rued Antonio.

Concern on the safety of members of Gilas Pilipinas prompted the organizing Chinese Taipei Basketball Association to withdraw Monday night its invitation to the Philippine national team to defend its crown in the 2013 William Jones Cup in July.

The Jones Cup organizers informed Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas of their decision in a letter to SBP president Manny V. Pangilinan.

The Taipei cage federation cancelled its invites on Gilas Pilipinas amid tension between the Philippines and Chinese Taipei over the death of a Taiwanese fisherman in disputed waters.

The Nationals were to defend the crown they won last year, ending a 14-year title-drought in the Taipei tournament traditionally serving as the tune-up tourney to FIBA Asia events.

The cream of the crop in the region, except China, competes in the Jones Cup.

“Importante ang Jones Cup kasi doon mo makikita ang mga makakalaban natin sa FIBA Asia Championship,” said Reyes.

The 2013 Jones Cup is slated in July, two weeks before the FIBA Asia Championship set Aug. 1-11 in Manila.

It is supposed to be Gilas’ only other international trip outside of its two-week Lithuanian training in June where the Nationals get to play six tune-up matches with Lithuanian pro teams.