Notre Dame point guard Vanessa de Jesus returns to Gilas Pilipinas with a sense of urgency ahead of two tournaments.
For Gilas Pilipinas guard Vanessa de Jesus, there’s no waiting on the future as she focuses on the now with the national team, with the Fil-Am cager joining the team ahead of their campaign at the 2025 FIBA Women’s Asia Cup in China.
Two years since making her debut in a Philippines jersey, de Jesus enters the picture once again with a renewed vigor.
[READ: Vanessa de Jesus to join Gilas Pilipinas Women for Jones Cup, FIBA Women’s Asia Cup]
Understanding what’s on the line, de Jesus said that she hopes to help the Philippines take it to the next level against Asian powerhouses, having been grouped with the likes of Australia, Japan, and Lebanon in the tiff next month.
“Two summers ago, I had a really great time representing the Philippines at the FIBA Asia Cup and I just wanted to announce that I’m playing to represent them again this coming July in China,” de Jesus told media on Tuesday.
“I’m just super excited to represent the Philippines and get back out there with the team and hopefully go to the World Cup,” she added.
The top six teams in the tournament get a chance to compete for a chance at the World Cup, with qualifying spots on the line.
Heading also into a new team in her collegiate career with the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, de Jesus said that she’s since grown in terms of how she approached the game and that time is of the essence — both for herself and the team.
Having seen tremendous growth on her personal journey and in the national team’s, de Jesus believes that it is time for them to put them into use and hopefully get into the picture of a World Cup berth — with a Top 6 finish in the tournament putting them at greater chances of qualifying.
“I think, a lot of the things [where] I’ve grown is my relentlessness and just the urgency of the time and the present. So for me, you know, we’ve really grown as a program, like myself, but also the Philippines team and I think now’s the time to just really show it and not wait for the future,” said de Jesus.
“So for me, it’s coming in with that mentality of the present and being ready to compete now. Helping us win now and I think we have the group, and if we just lock in, buy in together and understand that putting in the work and just being really focused on giving it all, I think that will help us in the end,” she added.
De Jesus returns to the national team with a wealth of experience as well since 2023, after recently reaching the Elite Eight with Duke University before she ultimately transferred in the offseason to the Fighting Irish.
With her renewed vigor and experience, de Jesus is relishing the stage at the FIBA Women’s Asia Cup.
“I’ve been through a lot. Personally and in the basketball court and it kind of just taught me to take advantage of the moment and yeah, giving it all,” she said.
Before the FIBA Women’s Asia Cup, de Jesus will also be joining Gilas Pilipinas in the William Jones Cup in Taiwan earlier in July.