Young Philippines players join Blatche for Basketball World Cup

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Yeng Guiao, head coach of the Philippines, announced the final roster for the FIBA Basketball World Cup on August 25 – a squad led by naturalized American center Andray Blatche and joined by many promising young men.

The list goes as follows:

Japeth Aguilar (center), Robert Bolick (guard), C.J. Perez (guard), Raymond Almazan (forward), June Mar Fajardo (center), Roger Pogoy (guard), Mark Barroca (guard), Paul Lee (guard), Kiefer Ravena (guard), Andray Blatche (center), Gabe Norwood (forward), Troy Rosario (forward)

The Philippines watched several veterans leave - Jayson Castro, Jimmy Alapag and LA Tenorio but fortunately, some stayed. Norwood, Lee, Aguilar, Blatche and five-time Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) MVP Fajardo all played for the country in the 2014 Basketball World Cup in Spain.

Kiefer Ravena #1 of the Philippines shoots in the game against Chinese Taipei, November 27, 2017. /VCG Photo

Coach Guiao also put some new shining names into the lineup. Three under-25 guards, Perez, Bolick and Ravena will make their debuts at the World Cup. Perez and Bolick are showing their prominence as rookies in this PBA season while Ravena already proved that he's one of the best of the new generation last season.

Almazan, Rosario, Pogoy and Barroca will also start their first World Cup journey after collecting enough experience in their clubs.

Jordan Clarkson of the Cleveland Cavaliers handles the ball in the game against the San Antonio Spurs at the AT & T Center, March 28, 2019. /VCG Photo

The bad news for the Philippines was that they cannot take Jordan Clarkson, who could get 16.8 points and 2.4 assists per game for the NBA's Cleveland Cavaliers last season. FIBA allows only one naturalized player for each team at the World Cup and coach Guiao chose Blatche over Clarkson in the end.

Despite this, coach Guiao is positive about the team's prospect at the World Cup. "The Spain camp was really beneficial for everybody. We learned a lot of things in Spain. The team bonded really well… we will go to China knowing that we will give our best, and we have prepared the best way we know. We will represent the Philippines the best way we can," said Guiao.

The Philippines are in Group D with Italy, Serbia and Angola and they will meet their first opponent Italy at the Foshan International Sports and Cultural Center on August 31.