Wary of Indonesia
Gilas assistant coach Jong Uichico returns from a brief scouting trip to Indonesia tomorrow and is expected to report on how the national team has progressed since losing to the Philippines, 72-64, in the final of the 2015 Southeast Asian (SEA) Games in Singapore.
Indonesia head coach Wahya Widayat Jati opened training camp last November. So far, the pool of 15 has raised eyebrows and sent an alarm to other SEA countries that it means business. Late last year, the pool downed Pertamina Jakarta, 91-53 and Adroit Singapore, 101- 55, in a pocket tournament. Indonesia took on CLS Knights Surabaya last Wednesday and Pacific Caesar Surabaya the next day in a pair of tune-ups with Uichico watching from the stands.
With Indonesian tycoon and SEABA president Erick Thohir providing unconditional support, the word is the national team is out to dislodge the Philippines as top dog in the Southeast Asia subzone. Curiously, the Philippines and Indonesia are tying up in a joint bid to host the 2023 FIBA World Cup. Both Thohir and SBP chairman emeritus Manny V. Pangilinan are FIBA Central Board members. They will attend the FIBA Central Board meeting in Mies, Switzerland today and tomorrow.
Pangilinan left for Switzerland last Wednesday evening. SBP executive director Sonny Barrios followed yesterday. Also in the Philippine delegation to Mies are SBP president Al Panlilio and former SBP vice chairman and First Pacific director Ricky Vargas.
**** The first test of Indonesia’s development will come at the SEABA Championships on April 23-30. SBP deputy executive director for international affairs Butch Antonio said yesterday no venue has been decided for the tournament which may be scheduled to coincide with the staging of the SEABA U16 Championships. The only sure thing is the Philippines will host the SEABA men, U16 and women’s competitions this year.
Antonio said the SBP Executive Committee will meet soon to determine where to hold the tournaments. “That will be sometime next week after Mr. Panlilio and E. D .( Barrios) return from Switzerland,” he said. “The Executive Committee will decide whether to hold the tournaments in Metro Manila or outside Metro Manila. Nothing is confirmed at the moment. The option of holding the SEABA men’s tournament in Cebu has been discussed but right now, there is no firm decision one way or the other.”
Antonio said it’s also not sure if the SEABA men’s and U16 tournaments will be held simultaneously although that is the plan. The women’s event will be on May 16-20.
Indonesia is working doubletime because the national team intends to be competitive for the 2018 Asian Games which the country will host. Besides, since Indonesia and the Philippines are bidding to co-host the 2023 FIBA World Cup, it’s certain Thohir wants the national team to qualify for the tournament. There will be seven Asia/Oceania qualifiers for the 2023 World Cup. If the Philippines and Indonesia win the bid, the automatic slot for the host nation will go to the Philippines as the lead country, meaning Indonesia has to be among the seven Asia/Oceania qualifiers to make it to the World Cup.
Indonesia took the silver medal in men’s basketball at the SEA Games in 2001, 2007 and 2015. In the SEABA Championships, Indonesia was second in 2005, 2007, 2009 and 2011 before falling to fourth in 2013 and 2015. Indonesia’s 15-man pool is led by naturalized players Jamarr Johnson and Anthony Hargrove, 6- 0 FilIndonesian Ebrahim (Biboy) EnguioLopez, 6-7 Christian Renaldo Sitepu, 5-9 Mario Wuysang, 6-2 Oki Sanjaya and 6-2 Sandy Kurniawan. Johnson, 28, and Hargrove, 27, are both from New Jersey. Johnson is a 6-5 forward who played at Widener University in Pennsylvania. Last season, Johnson tore the Indonesian league apart, bagging regular season and playoff MVP honors along with the Rookie of the Year trophy. He averaged 15.3 points, 9.8 rebounds and 26.2 minutes for CLS Knights Surabaya in the regular season and 17.2 points, 9.7 rebounds and 34.1 minutes in the playoffs. Hargrove is a 6-6 forward who played three years for FEU in the UAAP. Since FIBA allows only one naturalized player per national team, either Johnson or Hargrove will suit up for Indonesia in the SEABA Championships.
Wuysang, 37, is a long- time playmaker with the national team. A dual citizen, Wuysang has a US passport and played for the Fort Wayne Mastodons in the NCAA Division II. Kurniawan, 30, hit 16 points against the Philippines in the SEA Games final two years ago. Sanjaya, 25 and Enguio-Lopez, 28, are also SEA Games veterans. Enguio-Lopez’ father is from Bali and mother is a Filipina. He played for UE in the UAAP and Cobra Energy Drink and Boracay Rhum in the PBA D-League before settling in Jakarta. Sitepu, 30, used to anchor the middle for Indonesia but will now share interior duties with either Johnson or Hargrove.
Thailand is another team that will likely bring in a naturalized player for the SEABA Championships. There is a slew of Thai-foreign basketball players but their eligibility as locals depends on whether they got their Thai passports before turning 16. Among the Thai- foreign players are 5-10 Freddie Goldstein of South Alabama, 6- 6 Moses Morgan of DePaul and California State at Fullerton, 6-5 Tyler Lamb of UCLA and Long Beach State and 6-4 Justin Bassey of Harvard. Thai-Irish Reuben Lane, a 6-5 forward, is already with the Thai national squad as Wuttipong Dasom. Another Thai-Irish player is 6-5 Sukhdave Ghogar.
Antonio said the SBP plans to add two more naturalized players to the Gilas pool but the process will go through Congress so it may not happen this year. Andray Blatche is being counted on to play for Gilas in the SEABA Championships but his availability hinges on how far his team Xinjiang Flying Tigers advances in the Chinese Basketball Association playoffs.