THE cage tourney of this year’s 34th Southeast Asian Games in Thailand will surely pose a big challenge to the field.
Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas executive director Erika Dy said more stringent FIBA rulings will be imposed by the hosts, meaning only one naturalized player will be allowed to suit up for every team.
“For the SEA Games, it’s going to be tough, especially because we received a circular last week from the host and they will be strict on FIBA rules,” Dy said. “This means unlike past SEA Games where we can have an Ange Kouame and Justin Brownlee on the same team, that’s no longer going to happen.
“Unless we get Ange to be a local somehow but I think it’s going to take time for FIBA to even consider that,” she added.
If and when it pushes through, Gilas Pilipinas can no longer field multiple naturalized players, unlike in the Cambodia Games where Brownlee and Christian Standhardinger, deemed as naturalized players by the world governing body, saw action together for the crew that regained the gold medal in 2023.
The Cambodians had six naturalized players in the last biennial showpiece, with this year’s edition slated Dec. 9 to 20 in the capital, Bangkok, Chonburi, and Songkhla.
Brownlee and Kouame, both naturalized cagers, also teamed up in the Asian Games in Hangzhou that ended a 61-year title drought two years ago.
Dy said the SBP is working hard to come up with the best team.
“We have been discussing it a lot. We have no concrete plans yet because there are a lot of suggestions,” she said.
“Kailangan lang talaga pag-aralan mabuti ano iyong best way to form a more formidable team for the SEA Games.”