ON THE BUBBLE? Race for Gilas Pilipinas roster spots heats up

The race for spots in the final roster of Gilas Pilipinas intensifies with five players said to be on the bubble based on their performance during their games against Ivory Coast and Montenegro in the final stretch of their preparation for the FIBA Basketball World Cup.

Ray Parks, Thirdy and Kiefer Ravena, Calvin Oftana, and Chris Newsome are said to be fighting for their spots in the Gilas squad that will compete in this prestigious 32-nation tournament starting 25 August at the Philippine Arena in Bocaue, Bulacan.

Only 12 players in the 16-man pool will make the final roster with National Basketball Association star Jordan Clarkson, 7-foot-3 slotman Kai Sotto and World Cup veterans June Mar Fajardo and Japeth Aguilar said to be assured of their respective spots.

Gilas coach Chot Reyes said their friendlies against Ivory Coast, Montenegro and Mexico will serve as his basis for the composition of the final roster, which he will be announced during the team managers meeting on Wednesday.

But with the looks of it, it seems that Parks and Thirdy are on the way out.

Despite being mainstays in the Gilas program for the past couple of years, Parks and Thirdy were scratched from the 14-man roster during their friendly matches against Ivory Coast and Montenegro.

Kiefer, Oftana and Newsome could also be in trouble.

Kiefer submitted an underwhelming performance in their 85-62 win over Ivory Coast in which he logged only one point, one rebounds and one assist in nearly 12 minutes of action.

In their 102-87 loss to Montenegro, Ravena was given another chance but he failed to register a point in 8:32 of playing time.

Oftana, for his part, was also not part of the Gilas roster against Ivory Coast before failing to contribute offensively in a forgettable four minutes of playing time against Montenegro.

Newsome also failed to score in four minutes against Ivory Coast before logging a DNP-CD (Did Not Play-Coach's Decision) against Montenegro, where Clarkson fired 27 points and Fajardo added 19 markers to spearhead Gilas' inside-outside attack.

Parks, Thirdy, Kiefer, Oftana and Newsome, however, still have a chance to prove their worth when Gilas battle Mexico in their last friendly match. Action is still ongoing at press time at the Philsports Arena in Pasig City.

Reyes refused to speculate on the composition of their final roster but stressed that he was surprised with how Gilas performed against a very solid Montenegrin side bannered by 6-foot-10 Nikola Vucevic of the Chicago Bulls.

Gilas were able to match up well in the first two quarters, 42-44, before the Montenegrins stepped on the gas and turned the game into a lopsided affair.

"I'm surprised we even got that close to them because our opponents are really strong," Reyes said.

Reyes added that they will continue their preparation until the eve of their battle against the Dominican Republic on 25 August.

After all, the Dominicans will parade NBA star Karl-Anthony Towns and Lester Quiñones so they have to be at their best to pull off an earthshaking upset.

"We can't rest now. We'll keep going because we only have three days left,' Reyes said, referring to the squad that pushed reigning champion Spain to the limit before surrendering a 77-86 decision in their final friendly encounter.

"They have Towns and that other guy, Quiñones. They are very good. The game against Spain was close (up to the third quarter)."