Gilas braces for Typhoon Manu

MANILA, Philippines - San Antonio Spurs star Manu Ginobili will play for Argentina at the coming FIBA World Cup and at least three other NBA veterans are in the lineup that the Philippines must contend with when they face off on Sept. 1 in Seville.

 Argentina and the Philippines are bracketed in Group B with Croatia, Greece, Puerto Rico and Senegal. The Philippines opens its campaign against Croatia on Aug. 30 then battles Greece on Aug. 31, Argentina on Sept. 1, Puerto Rico on Sept. 3 and Senegal on Sept. 4.

Ginobili, who will be 37 by the time the World Cup begins, announced his decision to suit up for Argentina a few days after the Spurs captured the NBA title in San Antonio last June 15. “The first person I spoke to (about playing) was my wife (Marianela Orono),” wrote Ginobili in a column for the La Nacion newspaper. “I also spoke to Pop (Spurs coach Gregg Popovich) and called up (national coach) Julio (Lamas) to confirm it. For the first time in my career, it wasn’t an easy decision to say yes. Not because of what I feel for the national team, that’s never under question. It’s no longer easy to spend the majority of my holidays away because I have three children (twins Dante and Nicola, four, and Luca born last April). The main reason why I’m playing is because of my wife. She supported me to do it. I know she makes an effort similar or more than mine and I value it a lot. It’s not easy to leave my children, especially when I have a chance to recover the time lost (during the NBA season). I play on the national team because it’s very beautiful what we have. What we have achieved in all of these years, what we feel, the experience remains and I didn’t want to miss it.”

When the buzzer sounded to signal the end of the title-clinching Game 5 in the recent NBA Finals, Ginobili wrapped himself in an Argentine flag to show where his heart is.

Ginobili was on the Argentine squad that took the gold at the 2004 Athens Olympics and the bronze at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. He also played on the fourth-place team at the 2012 London Olympics. Ginobili was on the runner-up team at the 2002 FIBA World Championships and the fourth-place team at the 2006 FIBA World Championships. He skipped the 2010 FIBA World Championships to be with his wife who had just delivered twins. Argentina is ranked third in the world by FIBA.

“When I balanced things out, the commitment I felt with my teammates and how much I enjoy being with them was what made me decide,” said Ginobili. “All of the times I’ve played with the national team have been very valuable even when we lost.”

Other NBA veterans in Lamas’ roster for Seville are 6-9 Luis Scola, 6-3 Pablo Prigioni and 6-7 Andres Nocioni. A spot has been left vacant for another NBA player Carlos Delfino who is recovering from two surgeries to repair a broken bone in his right foot. Delfino sat out the last NBA season because of the injury but may be back on the court in Spain.

Scola, 36, has played for Houston, Phoenix and Indiana in a seven-year NBA career. Prigioni, 37, saw action in the last two seasons with the New York Knicks. Nocioni, 34, suited up for Chicago, Sacramento and Philadelphia in the NBA from 2004-05 to 2011-12. The 6-7 forward now plays for Laboral Kutxa Vitoria in the Spanish league.

“As coach of the national team, I’m delighted because of what Manu’s presence means,” said the 49-year-old Lamas who once coached Real Madrid and has won three Argentine league titles. “It really improves the options of the team and helps in every sense, to be a stronger and more competitive team. Manu makes his teammates better. It’s (been) 16 years after Manu started to play for the national team and Luis, 15. It’s quite emotional to see their commitment, their passion for basketball and to compete.”

Scola said he’s looking forward to playing in Spain. “I hope we are going to do well and be able to enjoy it,” he said. “Spain is special to me because I spent 10 years there. Coach Julio asked me if I was going to the World Cup and I told him yes, something that is obvious and normal because I am healthy and I played at the qualifiers.” Prigioni said he won’t miss playing at the FIBA World Cup. “It will be a special tournament,” he said. “We will try to bring to the court the desire to compete and fight. While many national teams naturalize players or hire foreign coaches, our team has a very particular national essence. It’s something to be proud of.”

As for Delfino, he said the decision to play isn’t his to make alone. “I want to play,” said Delfino who has worn the Argentine colors in three Olympics and two FIBA World Championships. “But it doesn’t just depend on me.” How quickly he recovers from his injury and whether the Milwaukee Bucks, his new team, will allow him to play are the critical issues. Before last season, he signed a three-year $9.75 million contract to play for the Bucks but the final year is not guaranteed so only $6.5 million is assured. Delfino, however, was not able to play on the first year of the contract.