NATURALIZED star Justin Brownlee is raring to suit up for Gilas Pilipinas in the second window of the FIBA Asia Cup qualifiers.
“Just try to get over the hump first, you know. It’s a tough loss for us. Like I said, we fought hard,” Brownlee said after Ginebra dropped a heartbreaking 85-95 loss in Game 6 to now reigning two-time champion TNT last Friday night in the PBA Governors’ Cup finals. “Definitely, I still have a responsibility to go out there and fight for the country and we got two tough opponents. New Zealand and Hong Kong.
“So, I just got two days (to rest) before the training camp which will be maybe a week or so just get ready for that and prepare,” he added.
But there’s just some cloud of uncertainty in Brownlee’s coming Gilas stint due to the 6-foot-5 cager’s wear and tear of playing in Indonesia last August and in the just-concluded PBA season-opening meet where his side yielded the crown anew to the Tropang Giga.
Brownlee will also likely be the Kings’ import anew in the mid-season Commissioner’s Cup set to come off the wraps on Nov. 27.
“The question is whether he wants to be. He’s a little worn down. He’s talked about maybe taking the conference off. But we’ll see,” Ginebra coach Tim Cone said of Brownlee. “Give him a week or two to rest and maybe he’ll change his tune. Right now, he’s got to turn around in a week and start practicing with Gilas.
“So, he’s got Gilas next and then what, three days after Gilas, the new conference starts. So, it’s a little unfair for him at this point. He came from Indonesia, he got here, had to have this long conference and now he has to go to Gilas and then has to go to the next conference.”
The Filipino cagers will play a pair of home matches against New Zealand on Nov. 21 and Hong Kong three days later at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay.
Cone said it will ultimately be Brownlee’s decision.
“That’s really going to be on him. It’s his choice,” Cone said. “We’re not going to make that decision for him. He’s going to decide on his own whether he wants to play or not.”
Another Kings star, Japeth Aguilar, could also miss the window.
But with Jamie Malonzo still sidelined (calf), the veteran Aguilar could be called up—or young big man Mason Amos of La Salle.
“Yes, he’s an alternate, part of the 14,” Cone said of Aguilar. “So right now, we have one guy who’s out, that’s Jamie. So, it’s either got to be him or Mason. Again, that’s going to be up to Japeth. Japeth is going to decide whether he wants to play, whether he feels he has the energy to play or not.
“So, we will leave that up to Japeth. If not, Mason will be the 12th guy.”
A FIBA World Cup slot for Gilas in 2027 in Qatar and a long-cherished return stint to the Olympics in Los Angeles four years from now are the long-term targets of Cone. Having a formidable roster in front of an expected big homecourt fans will not hurt.
