Post-Gilas-Angola thoughts: Expectations vs reality
MANILA, Philippines – “Those stumbles exposed depth issues, particularly among the team’s big men and outside shooters.”
“The coaching team is gonna need good and full analysis after what happened.”
“What a disgrace.”
“Truly embarrassing.”
“They choked hard that game.”
“They cannot be carried by ___.”
No, those aren’t comments levied at the Philippines men’s basketball team after their second consecutive FIBA World Cup loss, this time to Angola, 80-70, to fall into the classification phase of the tournament.
The first four are comments after the USA was ousted by France in the quarterfinals of the 2019 FIBA World Cup. The first is from Washington Post writer Glenn Yoder, and the rest are online comments from James13H, Kenny10100 and Dautjazz.
The last two are from Argentinean fans DJ Bob and Otharp after Argentina failed to qualify for this year’s edition of the tournament, when they were eliminated by the Dominican Republic.
Added Yoder in his op-ed piece, “The (American) team that traveled to China simply wasn’t good enough, not when the rest of the world has gotten markedly better.”
I would like to place emphasis on the second half of that statement — the rest of the world has gotten better.
I am not covering up the national team for any shortcomings. While I would love for the team to make it to the second round of the tournament, realistically, I wasn’t sure we’d accomplish that. Of course there is a chance, but it is not given.
I wonder — what are the expectations anyways?
We are 1-9 since 2014 in the FIBA World Cup. Just because in 2014 we lost by three points to Croatia, four points to Argentina and Puerto Rico, it doesn’t mean that we have arrived.
Gilas was the unknown variable in that competition. The Filipinos snuck on some teams that were either rebuilding or ageing and made a game of it.
Come 2019, we were blown off the court by Italy and Serbia — by 46 and 59 points, respectively, before losing a close match to Angola, 84-81.
Prior to Australia’s participation in FIBA Asia and their last two titles in FIBA Asia, China won in Changsa in 2015.
In 2017, China finished fifth then dropped to eighth in 2022.
Iran, which rose to prominence in 2007 and won three FIBA Asia Cup championships (among other regional competitions), last won in 2013. They finished with a bronze and a silver in the next two iterations, after which they missed a podium finish in 2022.
After Iran won the gold in the FIBA Asia in Manila in 2013, they finished 20th in the 2014 World Cup; a notch ahead of the Philippines.
During the 2010 World Cup, Iran, the champions in Asia, finished 19th.
It simply means that the World Cup is much tougher. You might be the kings of Asia, but the world is different.
Japan is celebrating its first win against a European team in Finland. Uh, yes. Sure. But this 2023 edition is only the latter’s second berth in the World Cup. The first was in 2014.
In the EuroBasket, Finland’s best finish was sixth, but that was in 1967. Since then, they did not qualify for 16 tournaments and did not participate in one.
When their game picked up in 2011, the highest they placed was seventh, and that was in 2022.
Japan has won the Asia Cup twice, the World Cup five times, and has made the Olympics multiple times.
Finland hasn’t even had an Olympic berth.
This is keeping things in perspective. That’s a problem when you believe your own press and toot your own horn about your capabilities — a terrible Filipino trait — and then are smacked in the head by reality.
How many times have we changed “programs”?
Under Rajko Toroman, the national team went with an all-college team patterned after that Northern Consolidated Cement squad. While they had young Filipino stars, they had three naturalized Americans to carried that team!
And they never had to worry about West Asian teams Lebanon, Jordan and Iran.
That young talent iteration did not last because as competitive as they were, we would get blown out in the end.
So the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas switched to an all-pro team for several years before re-adopting the young collegiate lineup. And now it is back to the pros.
We aren’t the only ones who switch. Even the Americans do. It is the nature of the beast to do so with the pro leagues and all.
Yes, Filipinos are good and talented. But I think since we are the undisputed kings of Southeast Asia, we should set our sights on conquering Asia first before realistically thinking about going deep in the World Cup.
Sure, upsets will happen. It happens even to the best in the world.
I have to raise an eyebrow like The Rock when I hear that we have been left behind. Have we? We know all there is about the game. What new basketball systems are there? We have lots of learned coaches and players.
Years ago, in the UAAP, there was this coach who was given resources to win a title. But his team underachieved to the point that the owner of the school asked his top adviser, “Is the coach doing his job?”
Said the adviser, “I am at practice every day. I am in the dugout and all the practice sessions, they are drilled, prepared, and coached well.”
“So what is the problem,” asked the team owner.
“The other teams are just better” was the answer. Didn’t Yador also say that about Team USA in 2019?
Oh, that coach won a title a few years later — with the same team.
If Filipinos are displeased, how much more Iran and China — the two Asian basketball powers who do not amount to much on the international stage.
I like the fact that we have made the last three World Cups. So there’s a bit of that consistency. So now, build on that consistency and fill in the gaps. It isn’t easy. But we’re in the upper echelon of the competition.
There’s still a lot of work to be done and it is continuous. So do it. But we have to accept the fact that while we hung in against Angola, we couldn’t close them out. And they were bigger, stronger, skilled no doubt, and more athletic.
Having said that, I think we should all learn to manage expectations and be realistic. It is tough right now, but we will get there with a lot more fine-tuning.
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