The 2014
FIBA World Cup of Basketball is closing in. After 36 years, a Filipino team is
once again among the teams participating, and Pinoy hoop nuts the world over
eagerly await how Gilas Pililipinas will fare against the world's best
basketball talents.
In this
five-part series, I will give a preview of what to expect from each team Gilas
will face in Group B. In this particular post, we'll focus on a FIBA Americas
powerhouse team led by three NBA-level talents – Puerto Rico.
 |
| Renaldo Balkman cannot wait to face the Philippines in #Spain2014. (image from elnuevodia.com) |
(as of August 26, 2014)
Position
|
Name
|
Age
|
Height
|
Club
|
PG
|
Carlos
Arroyo
|
35
|
6’1
|
Galatasaray
|
PG/SG
|
JJ Barea
|
30
|
5’11
|
Minnesota
Timberwolves
|
PG/SG
|
Carlos
Rivera
|
31
|
6’2
|
Leones
Ponce
|
SF
|
David
Huertas
|
27
|
6’5
|
Piratas
Quebradillas
|
SF
|
Alex
Franklin
|
26
|
6’7
|
Indios
Mayaguez
|
SF
|
Alex
Galindo
|
29
|
6’7
|
Cangrejeros
Santurce
|
SF
|
Angel
Vassallo
|
28
|
6’6
|
Leones
Ponce
|
PF/C
|
Ramon
Clemente
|
28
|
6’7
|
Indios
Mayaguez
|
PF/C
|
Renaldo
Balkman
|
30
|
6’7
|
Capitanes
Arecibo
|
C
|
Ricky
Sanchez
|
27
|
6’11
|
Cangrejeros
Santurce
|
C
|
Daniel
Santiago
|
38
|
7’1
|
Cangrejeros
Santurce
|
C
|
Jorge Diaz
|
24
|
6’11
|
Piratas
Quebradillas
|
Notes:
- Los
Gallos just came off a loss to Team USA, but they have been brilliant in some
of their previous pre-tournament tune-ups, with wins over Angola and Argentina.
Puerto Rico beat their South American rivals, Argentina, 97-87, behind the 17
points and 9 assists of NBAer JJ Barea. That should boost this team’s
confidence moving forward and should definitely make them a legitimate threat
to be among Group C’s frontrunners.
- Of
course, the main thing going for coach Paco Olmos’s quintet is their silver
finish in the 2013 FIBA Americas, losing to Mexico in the Final. With a
relatively healthy and intact roster, Los Gallos should be a major force in
Spain.
 |
| Puerto Rico has done quite well in pre-tournament play. (image from the Basketball Federation of Serbia) |
- The
focus will squarely be on Puerto Rico’s vaunted backcourt, where, aside from
Barea, Carlos Arroyo will be the top threat. The former NBA playmaker, who now
plies his trade for Galatasaray in Turkey, continues to be an awesome two-way
player in FIBA hoops, despite already being 35 years old. He shot better than
44% from beyond the arc in the 2013 FIBA Americas while also norming around 4
assists and 2 steals per outing.
- Another
guy to watch is Renaldo Balkman, who will team up with Jorge Brian Diaz,
Ricardo Sanchez, Alex Galindo, and veteran Daniel Santiago up front for the
Puerto Ricans. Balkman will be remembered as the PBA import who tried choking
teammate Arwind Santos in 2013, and it will surely be an interesting affair
when he faces Gilas Pilipinas in group play. He’ll certainly make life tough
for our bigs, though. Balkman was a double-double threat in the 2013 FIBA
Americas, averaging about 19 points, 9 rebounds, 3 steals, and 1 block per
game. He shot an eye-popping 83% from the floor, too!
- One
x-factor is half-American Alex Franklin, who was named 2012 Baloncesto Superior
Nacional playoffs MVP after leading the Mayaguez Indians to their first league
title. He’s coming off an injury that sidelined him in 2013, but look for the 6’6
swingman to play a vital part as Los
Gallos hopes to make a strong impact.
 |
| Alex Franklin is one to watch for Puerto Rico. (image from FIBA.) |
How
does Gilas match up?
- In
terms of size, we match-up better with Puerto Rico compared to, say, Greece or
Croatia, but that doesn’t necessarily mean we’ll have an easier time against
this squad. Despite not having a platoon of superbly dominant big men, Los
Gallos is still plenty dangerous thanks to its backcourt firepower. It’ll be
really exciting to watch Barea and Arroyo square off against our very own
Jayson Castro, LA Tenorio, Jimmy Alapag, and Paul Lee. It’ll be speed vs. speed
and shooting vs. shooting. Should be great entertainment.
 |
| Carlos Arroyo, at 35, is still a spitfire for Puerto Rico. (image from the Basketball Federation of Serbia) |
- Having
said that, Balkman will be a major force for Puerto Rico and a major headache
for Gilas Pilipinas. Despite no longer playing in the NBA, Balkman is still a
dominant frontliner in international hoops. He should match-up pretty well with
Andray Blatche, in spite of the fact the former is giving up a few inches in
size.
- Speaking
of Blatche, he might not need to shadow Balkman too much on defense, since
Japeth Aguilar or Marc Pingris can, maybe, handle the former PBA import
relatively well. By well, I mean Balkman won’t put up like 30 points and 20
rebound,s of course. Because of this, I’m hoping Dray can put up a
double-double to pad our chances of upsetting Puerto Rico.
- Outside
shooting is a hallmark of both squads, so whoever shoots the lights out should
come out on top. In this regard, Jeff Chan, Ranidel De Ocampo, Gary David, and
even Gabe Norwood should be on-target. Anything less means our window closes
much much faster.
#LabanPilipinas
#PUSO
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