THE Philippines found itself in an unfamiliar situation in the draw for the International Basketball Federation (Fiba) Asia Men’s Championship in August.
But no one’s complaining.
Gilas Pilipinas, the national men’s basketball team, is the highest-ranked country in Group B of the continental championship serving as qualifier for the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics.
With the Philippines are Palestine, Kuwait and one more from East Asia, which could be either Hong Kong or Mongolia.
Gilas Head Coach Tab Baldwin admitted that the draw gives the country its best opportunity to qualify for the Olympics since 1972 in Montreal.
“We are the team to beat in our pool,” Baldwin said. “But the draw does not impact too much. If we’re going to win a gold medal, we’re going to beat strong teams in the quarters and semifinals. We’re going there to win a gold medal. We’re one of the favorite teams. We’ve got to beat good teams whether we play them early or late,” he added.
The Philippines is ranked 31st in the latest Fiba ranking, while Palestine is at No. 83. Kuwait is at 70th, Hong Kong No. 69 and Mongolia No. 120.
Palestine, despite being a first-timer in the Asian Championship, poses as the biggest challenge for the Philippines in the tournament set in Changsa, China, from September 23 to October 3.
Palestine Head Coach Jerry Steele has the manpower to make it to the next stage of the tournament led by Sani Sakakini, who averaged 24.3 points and 13.3 rebounds per game in the Incheon 2014 Asian Games.
Palestine will also be bannered by Nicola Fadayel, a half-Greek Palestinian, Minnesota native Jamal Abu-Shamala and half-Canadian Ahmed Haroon. The team also hopes to lure Omar Krayem, GlobalPort’s Asian import in the Governors’ Cup.
Baldwin said the Fiba rankings will be thrown out the window once the games begin.
“We will respect our opponents. We have to play good basketball every game that we play because that’s how you build your championship mentality,” Baldwin said. “You don’t go and say this is going to be an easy game. You build the quality of your team every game that you play.”
The top 3 teams in each group will advance to the next phase of elimination. The top 3 teams in Groups A and B will form Group E while the top 3 squads in Groups C and D will make up Group F.
Defending champion Iran, Japan, Malaysia and one entry from South Asia make up Group A. Host China, South Korea, Jordan and Singapore are in Group C, while Chinese Taipei, Lebanon, Qatar and Kazakhstan comprise Group D, considered to be the toughest bracket.