PH to surmount Sino wall

JAKARTA, Indonesia – Whether all the effort top local sports executives exerted to tab Jordan Clarkson is worth it will be known Tuesday when the Philippines faces familiar foe China in the men’s basketball competition of the 18th Asian Games Tuesday at the GBK Basketball Hall.

Clarkson will be the focus in the Rain or Shine-supported Gilas Pilipinas’ 4 p.m. (5 p.m. in Manila) collision with the Chinese following a dizzying turn of events that had the country’s top sports officials pleading before the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) and National Basketball Association (NBA) for Clarkson’s clearance.

With the deadline for submission of entries lapsed and the NBA strong on its stand that the Asian Games is not part of its agreement with the International Basketball Federation (FIBA), Clarkson almost did not make it to this competition.

Top executives of the Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) and Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP) as well as chief of mission Richard Gomez stormed both OCA and NBA with appeals for Clarkson to receive the go-signal to suit up.

He arrived around lunchtime of 16 August with the Gilastopainters in the heat of their battle with Kazakhstan.

Clarkson served as flag bearer for the Filipinos on opening-day parade while he familiarized himself with the system of head coach Yeng Guiao.

Fittingly, Clarkson will make his debut against a team that is the barometer of excellence in Asian basketball.

The Chinese are regarded as the giants of Asia and the biggest roadblock in the country’s road to regional glory.

A total of seven Asian Games gold medals are hanging around their necks and the only time they lost the crown was in 2014 in Incheon, South Korea when they sent their Team C, a squad without former NBA standout Yi Jianlian.

They are also regular fixtures in the Olympics with 12 appearances and quarterfinal finishes in the 1996 Atlanta, 2004 Athens and 2008 Beijing Summer Games.

The Philippines has yet to beat China in the Asian Games since a victory in the 1974 edition in Tehran before the Chinese went full blast and captured the bronze medal at the expense of the Filipinos, 102-89.

They will parade six players who are 6-foot-7 or taller, including seven-footers Wang Zhelin and Zhou Qi of the Houston Rockets as well as two-time Chinese Basketball Association Most Valuable Player Ding Yanyuhang and high-flying Sin Minghui and Zhao Tailong.

Although starting point guard Guo Ailun isn’t part of the team as well as his chief backup in Zhao Jiwei, the Chinese are still a force with veteran Fang Shuo and rising star Tian Yuxiang handle the playmaking chores.

After the ‘Gilastopainter’s’ 96-59 victory over Kazakhstan, a victory by the Philippines vs China will give it the top spot in Pool D that will put it in a collision against the second seed in Group A, which could either be Chinese Taipei or Indonesia in the quarterfinals.

A setback will spell doom as the Filipinos will be relegated to the second spot in Pool D, where the top seed in Pool A, which could be Korea, will be its quarterfinal foe.

“We have to admit that China is the favorite,” Guiao told Daily Tribune’s Asiad coverage supported by Primehomes. “But we are in a position where we have no choice but to beat China because we don’t want to face the reigning Asian Games champion (Korea) in the quarterfinals.”

“The most important thing is to keep the game close and be aggressive for the entire 40 minutes. We have to duplicate the performance we showed against Kazakhstan last week.”

Guiao assured that Clarkson will be very busy against the Chinese.

A 6-foot-5 playmaker, the 25-year old Clarkson is tipped to run the Gilastopainters’ offense as his speed, size and length could overwhelm the Chinese.

He can also play as decoy to free up shooters like James Yap and Chris Tiu at the wings.

He has been training for the past four days and appears to be at his best in five -on-five scrimmages.

Guiao said he doesn’t see any problem having him as the cornerstone of their attack.

“I don’t see any problem with his intelligence, with his abilities. He can blend in and lead this team, hopefully, deep into the medal round. Hopefully,” Guiao said, anticipating that the Cleveland stalwart will attract a lot of attention from the Chinese defense.

“What’s good for us is that we know that he’s going to attract a lot of attention, which would free up our shooters and other scorers. His playmaking ability and role as a decoy will be very useful for us against the Chinese, who are obviously way bigger than us.”

“If we’re ready to play without him, what more now that he’s around,” Guiao said. “It’s going to be a very interesting game.”