Gilas loses Brownlee for crucial home stand

Gilas Pilipinas will have to keep its World Cup hopes alive without one of its most dependable weapons as Justin Brownlee is set to miss the fourth window of the FIBA World Cup Asian Qualifiers.

Head coach Tim Cone confirmed on Monday that the 6-foot-7 naturalized player is not yet fully fit to suit up when the Nationals face Jordan on 28 August and Iran on 30 August at the Mall of Asia Arena.

“Justin is not here and we’ll most likely be without him,” Cone said.

Brownlee’s absence will be a major blow to Gilas, which currently carries a 2-4 win-loss record and needs a strong showing in the homestand to stay in contention for a berth in the next stage of the qualifiers.

The veteran forward has long been a stabilizing presence for the Nationals, averaging 14.2 points, 5.8 rebounds and 4.6 assists in five games of the World Cup Qualifiers.

With Brownlee sidelined, the burden will fall heavily on the local core led by Dwight Ramos, Kevin Quiambao, Carl Tamayo, AJ Edu and Kai Sotto.

Gilas will have little room for error against Jordan and Iran as they attempt to arrest their slide and keep their bid for the World Cup alive.