Scottie Thompson (with ball) tormented HongKong the last time theymet as he helped Gilas to a 94-64 win. —FIBA PHOTO
A healthy Scottie Thompson should bode well for Gilas Pilipinas when it plunges back into motion this Thursday within the second window of the Fiba Asia Cup Qualifiers.
“Scottie’s presence moves everybody back into their roles. And now, you may have that tremendous energy guy,” national coach Tim Cone said.
Article continues after this commercial
After missing the Olympic Qualifiers in Latvia as a consequence of a nagging back problem, the do-it-all playmaker is ready for an additional National Five stint when the Philippines takes on Latest Zealand in a battle of unbeaten teams at Mall of Asia Arena.
Thompson, a Cone guy at Barangay Ginebra and a former MVP within the PBA, allows the likes of Chris Newsome and Dwight Ramos to play their natural positions—something that they weren’t capable of do to the hilt when Gilas tried to secure an Olympic berth in Riga back in July.
The Philippines (2-0 win-loss) has been leading the continental meet in several statistical departments through the primary window held last February, amongst them points per game (100), field goal percentage (51%), and assists per night (31.5). Cone’s charges are also hands down probably the most efficient within the tournament with a rating of 147.5.
Article continues after this commercial
And there’s no denying that much of that has been possible due to Thompson’s tremendous playmaking as he also leads Gilas with nine assists an evening.
But for Cone, Thompson’s real price lies within the defensive value he brings to the Gilas backcourt, which incorporates CJ Perez.
Complete backcourt
“Scottie’s got great size for a degree guard. He can defend, and Latest(some) can defend and Dwight can defend. We’ve got a very good defensive backcourt. And CJ is absolutely our most athletic defender as well,” he said.
“I believe we’ve got a bent to take a look at ‘Wow, this guy’s a very good player because he can shoot, he can do that, or he can do this.’ But our mindset is you’ve got to be a two-way player. And admittedly, that starts with the defense.”
That now-complete backcourt shall be put to a stringent test when the World No. 34 Filipinos battle the Twenty second-ranked Tall Blacks (also 2-0), who shall be having the battle-hardened Corey Webster as skipper.
Gilas has broken its Encourage camp and has now moved its preparations to Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City, where they may even go up against a Hong Kong side they handily beat back in the summertime.
The Nationals pulled out a 96-82 victory over Meralco in its lone tuneup match for this Fiba window. The 7-foot-3 Kai Sotto, who was coming off concussion protocols by his B.League team, led the way in which for the squad in that Monday friendly in Laguna that left a superb impression on Bolts coach Luigi Trillo.
“Their starters played well particularly Justin (Brownlee), Dwight Ramos and Kai. They led by as (many) as 16,” Trillo told the Inquirer. “We tied it twice. The brand new guys struggled a bit but that was expected. Overall they looked impressive and on the proper track.
“They’re coming along. They will beat Latest Zealand in the event that they put their minds to it,” he went on.
A sweep of the 2 homestands will steer Gilas away from complications and gain guaranteed passage into the essential tournament that shall be held in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, in August next yr.
