"These games will show us what we’ve been doing right and what we need to work on."
There is growth in discomfort.
This is the belief of Gilas Pilipinas head coach Chot Reyes when the team planned out this European camp. It was in 2015 when Gilas last traveled here in preparation for the FIBA Asia Championships.
Back then the team lost all three games against The Netherlands, Iceland, and Estonia but the tough grind served its purpose as the squad had a better idea of what they needed to improve on.
This is what Reyes is also banking on with this group.
“The big reason for holding this training camp is for team resilience,” he stated. “Playing against tough teams, going two or three practices a day, having a body clock that is unadjusted to the local time, those are just examples of what the team will have to go through.”
Only 12 players made the trip from the Philippines with Justin Brownlee expected to join the team here.
“We’re still far from being in competitive game shape but we did not come here with nothing. We were able to put in some stuff, condition-wise and system-wise,” Reyes added. “I think we’re seeing very good movement. We’re encouraged by the developments. June Mar (Fajardo) is moving well, Japeth (Aguilar) is moving well and AJ (Edu) is the only one now we need to nurse to good health.”
Gilas will play two games where before moving to Lithuania. They will face off against the national teams of Finland and Estonia.
Finland is the 24th-ranked team in the world and they will also be competing in the FIBA Basketball World Cup. They finished second in Group J of the European Qualifiers with a 9-3 record and got grouped with Germany, Australia, and Japan.
2023 NBA All-Star and Most Improved Player Lauri Markkanen has announced he will be playing for Finland in the World Cup but he will only join the team after the completes his duties with the country’s mandatory military service.
Estonia, on the other end, is ranked 44th in the world but they were not able to qualify for the World Cup as they only had a 4-8 win-loss tally in the same group as Finland. This, however, does not mean they are an easy team to deal with.
The Estonians’ average height is 6-foot-7 and their smallest player is a 6-foot-4 point guard. Their average age is only 24 years so they will be a quick and athletic squad.
“We watched Estonia play Italy really well. They have a tall and experienced lineup and we all know Finland is strong as well,” Reyes said. “We’re excited to see how the team deals with adversity. Some of the younger players here have not yet faced European teams so it should be a great experience. These games will show us what we’ve been doing right and what we need to work on in the last two months of preparation.”