Waiting for Gilas 3

What is head coach Tab Baldwin and everyone else from Gilas Pilipinas waiting for? Where is the pool of available PBA players? Why are we not hearing of any practices, tune-up games and pocket tournaments while the rest of Asia is busy with the very same things? Will Andray Blatche be able to suit up, CBA contract and all?

As we write this piece, we have come to the realization that perhaps the focus of Gilas 3 should be to simply outscore opponents rather than trying to find the right balance between offense and defense. Don't get us wrong, we're not trying to sell you on the idea of abandoning defense altogether, we're just saying that perhaps we should go for broke and maximize our scoring prowess rather than always trying to match-up to our opponents.

Instead of bringing in two way players who are average on offense and defense but acceptable for both, why not bring in prime offensive weapons instead? No matter how you put it, basketball it still decided by the team that is able to score more than his opponent. Fact.

So instead of L.A. Tenorio, bring in Alex Cabagnot. Instead of waiting for "FIBA" Gabe Norwood, elevate Matt Ganuelas Rosser. Instead of Marc Pingris, go for Sonny Thoss. Japeth Aguilar? Bring in someone more explosive and knows what to do on the fly (is Joe DeVance eligible?).

PG Alex Cabagnot (ball handler, passer) Jayson Castro Paul Lee (combo guards)

SG Marcio Lassiter Dondon Hontiveros (2 way players, shooters) Jeffrei Chan (specialist)

SF Gabe Norwood (FIBA Gabe-- a category all on his own) Matt Rosser (FIBA Gabe-lite)

PF Andray Blatche (well duh) Ranidel de Ocampo (2nd unit anchor)

C Junemar Fajardo (weak side option for Blatche) Asi Taulava (enforcer)

Reserves: Sonny Thoss. Ryan Reyes. Greg Slaughter.

We all know whatever team Baldwin finally decides to bring in will still rely heavily on Blatche much like they did in Spain. What we are hoping for here is that the locals simply don't watch Blatche do his thing but to also provide the firepower. IMHO Blatche went iso on one too many occasions which completely alienated the locals and reduced them to spot-up shooters/ kick-out options.

It's not a "one man dribble drive, everyone waits and see if he'll pass offense." It's a "dribble drive, MOTION offense." Which means while one guy initiates the action, the rest move in rhythm, get to their spots and play their roles.

That's why we didn't bring in a guy like Japeth Aguilar, who needs a couple of precious seconds to decide what to do with the basketball when he's not in dunking or clear shooting position. We don't want Gilas to babysit anyone. We want this team ready to win, now.

We're going with Cabagnot, who has the size, speed, range and handles to combat anyone in Asia. He's at par with L.A. Tenorio IMHO, so it's always been quite odd that he's never been considered for the job. Castro and Lee are obvious choices, as they are arguably 1a and 1b when it comes to PBA point guards today.

Lassiter and Hontiveros should be obvious choices. While everyone fell in love with Gary David, Hontiveros was busy proving to everyone that he's still one of the elite (if not the yardstick) two-way players in the PBA today. Lassiter? He's practically Hontiveros with some Cali-swag. Chan is a favorite, if only because he's the best 4-point play maker in the league.

FIBA Gabe is FIBA Gabe. Rosser over Jared Dillniger. Over Calvin Abueva because Rosser won't try to purposely start a fight. Over Arwind Santos, because, well, he's Arwind Santos.

Blatche. De Ocampo as the back-up. Nice.

Fajardo is the anchor no matter what. Taulava, in limited minutes, can throw his weight around with the best bigs of Asia still. Quicker than Slaughter. Bigger than Thoss.

Honestly, we just want a team that will compete and not look lost out on the court, waiting for a hero. Blatche played hero. Jimmy Alapag played hero. We need all five guys on the court to be a threat at all times. We have the tools.

We just need to showcase them.

Where's Gilas 3?