Ni ERNEST HERNANDEZ

Abueva at Almazan, inalis sa Gilas Pilipinas.

WALANG pa-istaran sa Gilas Pilipinas. Ito ang tiniyak at sinigurong pamantayan ni National coach Chot Reyes.

At dahil sa kawalan ng interest diumano na mapabilang sa National Team na naghahanda para sa World Cup, isinapubliko ni Reyes nitong Lunes ang pagsibak sa beteranong sina Calvin Abueva ng Alaska at Raymond Almazan ng Rain or Shine.

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“It is going to be a process like I said, from the start, we wanted to get them in here but I talked to the players earlier and reminded the players that the entire program is about players desire to be here,” pahayag ni Reyes matapos ang ensayo ng Gilas sa ikatlong pagkakataon.

“One of the big reasons why we are successful is because we have players who want to be here and put in the effort, commitment and dedication.”

“That is the reason why we are dropping Calvin Abueva and Raymond Almazan for the second window because they haven’t shown up,” aniya.

Nakatakdang sumabak ang Gilas sa second leg ng FIBA World Cup 2019 Asian Qualifiers sa susunod na buwan at ang tila pagbabalewala nina Abueva at Almazan sa ensayo ng koponan ang ginamit na batayan ni Reyes para alisin ang dalawa sa lineup.

“It is already our third practice at hindi pa sila nagpapakita. So it is simply a matter of disinterest. I guess they are not interested and we have to move on, we can’t wait for those guys,” sambit ni Reyes.

Kabilang sa mga dumalo sa ensayo sina June Mar Fajardo, Gabe Norwood, Kiefer Ravena, Troy Rosario, Kevin Alas, Jio Jalalon, Mac Belo at RR Pogoy. Dumating din sina Jayson Castro at Carl Bryan Cruz, ngunit hindi sila nakiisa sa drills.

Bukod kina Abueva at Almazan, hindi rin umano nagpaparamdam ang iba pang miyembro ng Gilas.

“Aside from those two (Abueva and Almazan), we don’t know where Matthew Wright is. Allein (Maliksi) is attending a wedding in Australia and Japeth (Aguilar) had a previous function that we had exclusive for the interview,” pahayag ni Reyes.

Iginiit ni Reyes na ang hindi paglahok sa ensayo ay kawalan ng interest at dedikasyon para sa proseso at programa ng Gilas.

“Other than that, it is just an issue of Calvin and Raymond. If they don’t want to be part of this program, that is the reason why we are dropping them for the second window.”

Nagsimula ang ensayo ng Gilas ganap na 8:00 ng gabi at tumagal lamang ng isang oras. Pinangasiwaan nina assistant coach Josh Reyes, Jong Uichico at Jimmy Alapag ang ‘drive offense’ para maging pamilyar ang bawat isa.

“It is still very early days, the Mondays-only practice—nakikita niyo naman it is very light. So, the guys who have a game at the D-League tomorrow or have a game in the PBA last night have no reason to be here. The only reason they are not here is that they don’t want to be here,” sambit ni Reyes.

“You saw the Ateneo guys, I think they had a game at the D-League today and they rushed here. So, it is a question of dedication and desire. Kung gusto mo maraming paraan, kung ayaw mo, madaming dahilan. That’s the reason why we are doing these once-a-week practices, we want to see who are the people that want to be here and that is the big part of what we are looking for.”