THE ball is now on the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas’ court.
San Miguel Corp. sports director and Ginebra governor Alfrancis Chua yesterday said the SBP should decide future plans for Gilas Pilipinas after the country’s successful quest for the gold medal in the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, China.
“Hindi namin hawak iyon. SBP iyon, hindi kami. Tim (Cone) told me, ‘I want to go back to Ginebra. That’s my mother team’,” Chua said yesterday in a press conference organized by the PBA at its office in Libis, Quezon City. “You have to understand. The guy cannot coach this (Gilas) and then coach in the PBA.
“Where would you insert the practices? But that’s the main point. How will you organize this?” he added.
Chua served as team manager of the Philippine five that trounced Jordan 80-70 in the title match of the basketball event that ended a long and dreary 61-year dry spell for basketball-loving Pinoys.
The effervescent executive said the country’s governing body for basketball should lay down its plans for the first window of the FIBA Asia Cup qualifiers in February next year and the make-or-break Olympic qualifying tournament in July.
“Actually, nandoon pa lang kami sa China, I’m telling them, ‘You have to plan it now.’ Iyong celebration, tapos na iyon,” said Chua, who was joined by pro league chief Willie Marcial, chairman Ricky Vargas of TNT, and vice chairman Bobby Rosales of Terrafirma in the press conference.
“Tapos na, nakuha na natin iyong ginto. We have to plan it, kung anumang darating.”
Foresight is foremost among those things the SBP should work on.
“One, they have to check the schedules. Schedule ng PBA, kung kukuha kayo ng PBA players, hindi aabot dahil hanggang February kami,” Chua said, referring to the season-opening Commissioner’s Cup that will wind up in February.
“So, what’s your next step? Kukuha kayo sa UAAP, NCAA? Hindi biro. Kailangan planuhin niyo na iyon.”
Rosales shared the same sentiments, saying: “We have told them to already start planning and developing a national program, and that should be done yesterday because there will be windows. In all fairness to the PBA, it will also have to address its own concerns. We would like to bring the PBA back to normalcy.
“The normalcy we’re looking at is to bring it to the regular three conferences. So, in that sense, we have our own challenges also in the PBA.”
Marcial insisted the PBA will always support the Nationals as long as they plan ahead.
“With regard to the OQT and the FIBA Asia Cup, we need to talk first with the SBP. After we meet with the SBP, we need to talk to the governors about the plan. The SBP needs to present (a plan) to the governors, then we’ll see what the PBA can give. But like what (Rosales) said, the PBA is really suffering. We’ve suffered losses, we’ve sacrificed a lot,” he said.
“We owe it to the team owners. Let’s see what we can give, but we need the SBP to submit its program. We need to know its program so that we know how to support them.”
