GILAS Pilipinas coach Chot Reyes is trying to be patient as far as NBA star Jordan Clarkson of the Utah Jazz and 7-foot-3 center Kai Sotto are concerned.
He just wants to know when the two can join the team for its build-up for the FIBA World Cup.
With less than two weeks before Gilas toughens up in a pocket tournament in China, Reyes is likely set to force a deadline.
“Our plans will be compromised. I’m thinking July 25,” Reyes said, referring on when he will finalize the nationals’ line-up for their China trip.
“For anyone to play in China, they have to come to practice at the very least July 25,” he added.
The 6-foot-5 Clarkson is still in the United States while Sotto, nursing a back injury after suiting up for the Orlando Magic in the NBA Summer League, is reportedly set to arrive today instead of last Tuesday night.
Reigning PBA MVP Scottie Thompson’s status is also hanging in the air due to a hand injury.
“He’s going to have weekly X-rays, but if (he) gets cleared only on August 18 to start practice, I think that’s going to be too late for him,” Reyes said.
Patience is fast proving to be a virtue for Reyes.
“That’s cutting it really thinly because we’ll have only one week to practice before China,” he said. “But again, we understand the situation of the others, so we’re willing to bend over for that.”
The Filipino cagers lost their first two tune-up games against Estonia and Finland before traveling to Kaunas, where they won back-to-back matches against the Ukraine Under-20 squad and fell to a Lithuanian selection team.
Gilas is bracketed with Italy, Dominican Republic, and Angola in Group A of the blue-ribbon world cage spectacle the country is co-hosting with Japan and Indonesia from Aug. 25 to Sept. 10.
The nationals need to finish at least in the top two at the end of the group stage to advance to the next round and hopefully boost their bid of becoming the best placed Asian squad to directly qualify for the 2024 Paris Olympics.
