Wright ready to take Romeo’s place

Despite the absence of ace scorer Terrence Romeo, Gilas Pilipinas is not lacking in shooters when the national team takes on Japan to start its campaign in the FIBA World Cup qualifying tournament.

Ready to step up and provide scoring punch for coach Chot Reyes is sharpshooter Matthew Wright, now a mainstay of Gilas since he made his debut last year.

“I'll go about it the same way I'll go about it if Terrence is here or anyone else is here,” said the 6-foot-2 Fil-Canadian forward. “I always put enough pressure on myself to perform (better). I'm always ready and will always be ready.”

Romeo has opted to skip national team duties because of knee injury, leaving Reyes with Wright, as well as fellow hotshots Roger Pogoy, Allein Maliksi and guard Jayson Castro.

The absence of Romeo will give him and the others more opportunities to score from the perimeter and provide help to naturalized player Andray Blatche, the top offensive option of Gilas.

During the practice session of the national team, Wright said he focused on improving his shooting.

"I'm aware there will be a lot more shots on me. So I always go to the gym and prepare for this kind of situation," said Wright, a member of the Phoenix Fuel Masters in the PBA.

“Allein, Roger, and I… as well as Gabe (Norwood) and Jayson, we’ll all contribute, and fill up the void (in Romeo’s absence). Everybody will just have to up their level of play," added Wright.