Clarkson, Brownlee to play together with Gilas in FIBA World Cup?

PARIS — For PBA chairman Ricky Vargas, it’s not Jordan Clarkson or Justin Brownlee.

“It is Clarkson and Brownlee. It is ‘and not or,’ and it’s worth trying,” said Vargas, also a long-serving Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas official, on his desire to see both Clarkson and Brownlee playing with Gilas Pilipinas in the coming FIBA World Cup.

It’s about lobbying or appealing with the International Basketball Federation, and Vargas is hopeful the Philippines can be given some concession as a FIBAWC23 co-host with Japan and Indonesia.

Since FIBA has been firm on its decision on Clarkson’s status as a naturalized though he has Filipino lineage with Philippine passport, Vargas is now looking instead at raising the case of Brownlee.

“He’s played the most part of his professional life in the Philippines. May heritage na, nandito na yung pamilya nya, baka pwede na siyang ma-consider na regular player and not a naturalized,” Vargas told a small group of sportswriters ahead of the planning session of the PBA board of governors in this lovely French capital.

If approved by FIBA, then Gilas Pilipinas can tap both Clarkson and Brownlee for the FIBA showpiece where Team Philippines will duke it out with Angola, the Dominican Republic and Italy in group play.

The 40th-ranked Nationals intend to be well-equipped come August 25 against World No. 10 Italy, No. 23 the Dominican Republic and No. 41 Angola in Group A.

“Dapat pag-aralan na nila ng husto yung kalaban sa group play. Ibuhos na nila attention nila doon,” said Vargas on the more realistic goal of winning one or two games in the group play for a shot at the next round or to be the best Asian team to claim an automatic berth to the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Gilas coach Chot Reyes is looking for training camps and tuneup matches overseas. Arrangements are being made to hold camp in Lithuania and play a possible pocket tournament and in the US to face US NCAA Division 1 teams.

The intention is to make the 2023 group a better team than the legendary bunch that gave high-profile opponents a run for their money in the 2014 worlds in Spain.

“I think if we come in with the game that we brought in in 2014, it’s not gonna be enough. We have to be much, much better. And I hope that from now to then, we can find a way to really become a much better team,” Reyes said.

“We’re not picking the best talent, we’re picking the best team. We are putting a 'best team' together. We’re not putting together a group of superstars. We want to pick the best team possible,” he added.

In Seville, Spain in 2014 with Andray Blanche as naturalized, Gilas pulled off one win at the expense of Senegal. Five years later in China, the Nationals finished dead last at 32nd without a win to show in five games.