Young, wild and free

Kalma lang mga brad,
i-guest ang Gilas sa GGV!

"We're just having fun, we don't care who sees... living young, wild and free." - Wiz Khalifa

So it's a Sunday morning and we're brushing up on the latest on the SMART Gilas men's basketball program-- specifically it's ever-changing roster. We've grown weary of all the drama that Team San Miguel keeps putting out there, so let's just not talk about the "what if's" and just go with who we have at the moment.

Enter the SMART Gilas "cadet pool"-- collegiate stars who would probably enter the league not until two or three years from now. Seriously, this team looks more like the NCAA All Star counterpart of the then UAAP-heavy selection of the original Gilas program bannered by Chris Tiu and JVee Casio. Below is a look at the possible roster for the coming Dubai and Hong Kong pocket tournaments:

PG Kevin Alas, RR Garcia, Justin Melton
Loving the Garcia inclusion because he's a UAAP MVP and proven winner. The guy has transformed his game from a flashy scorer to a cerebral combo guard. Though his college team faltered this season (it was more of the team choosing to go with young star Terrence Romeo rather than anything Garcia did), the guy has legit game. Think of him as a new JVee Casio. For Alas, he's a little too under sized a scorer to really make a dent in the international game. We're not discrediting him or anything, but his high-scoring performance in the NCAA wont help his cause once he's asked to guard 6"3 and up point guards specially the physical ones coming from the middle east. Still, you have to love the change in tempo, Garcia brings in the stability, Alas the spark. Jury's out on Melton, a US NCAA division 2 player who has strutted his wares in the Brazilian league.

SG GARY DAVID, Garvo Lanete, RONJAY BUENAFE, Mario Bonleon
Really? Still no love for Mark "don't call me MacMac" Cardona? Sigh. Okay, David's out because he's injured but credit has to go to him for trying to make up for lost time and just wanting to play for flag and country. Lanete had his moments for Gilas 2.0 in the Jones Cup. Buenafe, as he has proven in the PBA for new team Meralco Bolts, thrives in the "dribble drive motion offense" as a kickout three point target. Bonleon, a high school star, will learn a lot from these guys. Wag lang ma-pirata ng Ateneo ha.

SF Ronald Pascual, Mathew Ganuelas 
Ganuelas will make up for the "loss" of Norwood, he has shown that he's a better scorer than Norwood with all the athleticism and ball-handling skills. A concern would be his defense and how disciplined he is at that end (Norwood, is an under-rated defender, yes, we just said that. We give GN credit where it's due from time to time). Pascual is a SG by trade, but has enough smarts to play SF. Another shooter that could help spread the floor, it's going to be a thrilling, crazy ride when our guards all get hot at the same time (Alas, David and Pascual/Buenafe all draining threes in a single game? Pauulanan namin kayo ng tres Tsina, Korea, Iran!)

PF KG CANALETA, Jake Pascual, Arvin Tolentino
Canaleta's been solid this season for Air21 and has been putting in work. His rebounding is a concern so there is that. He's also not a big enough option at the PF spot to play defense (the last time he played D was back in UE, when he didn't have a jumpshot). Pascual's solid, but undersized. High school prospect Tolentino is another undersized big. Perhaps Coach Chot can look at other PBA teams to toughen up this position.

C Greg Slaughter, Ian Sangalang, JAYR REYES
If there's any hope for Gilas' cadet pool, it's at the big man spot where our local boys appear to be stacked. Slaughter, though perpetually slow to move laterally, is a legit 7"0 that doesn't shy away from contact. He's not in game shape as compared to rival JuneMar Fajardo of Petron, but hopefully the pocket tournaments will get his body ready for elite competition. PBA player Reyes tries his luck anew with this team after failing miserably to show any signs of improvement or consistency this Philippine Cup for Meralco. The real star at this spot, who we envision will slide to the 4 if we get Marcus Douthit to play again with the final roster, is NCAA MVP Ian Sangalang. The big man from Pampanga has legit handles, low post moves, can make the correct passes and moves like a gazelle on the floor (like a 6"6 Pau Gasol except, having been born and bred in Pampanga's basketball crazy province, this guy can take and dish out physicality).

Honestly, we're looking at a solid young core that can be built for the future. Though we're still praying for a mostly PBA selection, we just have to accept that there are teams who have different agendas and that we'll just have to respect that. Our concern is really bulking up the frontline with taller and bigger guys (Barako Bull's Doug Kramer and Dave Marcelo, Ginebra's little-used Kerby Raymundo and or GlobalPort's Jason Deutchman) and maybe fortifying the PG spot a bit more (though we're not going to be surprised if our boys Jayson Castro and Ryan Reyes FINALLY make their Gilas appearances soon).

Also, where the f are RayRay Parks and Keifer Ravena?

Laban Pilipinas!