Bolick ready to play for country anew

The experience of representing Gilas Pilipinas in the 33rd Southeast Asian Games and winning the gold in the process was one in a million for Robert Bolick.

And if given a chance to represent the country again, Bolick sure won’t pass up on the chance.

“I will be given a call-up anew, why not? If not, I will just support whoever will be chosen,” said Bolick, who played a crucial role in Gilas Pilipinas’ march to the gold medal of the biennial meet in Thailand last week.

Bolick’s role in the title run, which saw Gilas win all four games after being down in the first half, has prompted calls from fans to include the NLEX ace scorer in the list of players on the main pool.

The Season 49 Mythical First Team member was among the late call-ups to coach Norman Black’s squad after Gilas was mired in one roster change after another before the organizers decided it would bar naturalized players and those who failed to get a passport before the age of 16.

At the time of his addition, NLEX was in the midst of a 6-2 record in the Philippine Cup before flying to Thailand for the Games.

He was glad that his SEA Games stint had the full support of NLEX, even though the Road Warriors would eventually drop three in a row without him to finish at 6-5 and at No. 8 in the quarterfinals.

“I was really not part of the lineup until they had a problem,” he said. “NLEX asked me if I could play, of course, I agreed right away because it’s for the country.”