WANTED: HEALTHY GILAS!

INJURY after injury has plague the Gilas-Pilipinas' team line up as preparation for the Olympics Qualifying Tournament draws closer and closer. Headed by coach Tim Cone,he might just sound the alarm that would put an imminent disaster into check following two of his key players, Jaime Malonzo and A.J Edu, both fell by the wayside due to their respective nagging injuries.

And a third possible casualty in the Gilas' roster, is point-guard Scottie Thompson, who is reportedly nursing a back injury, he sustained during the Ginebra San Miguel-Meralco semi-final playoffs of the Philippine Cup, which the Volts won it beating the Cone's Gin Kings,3-2 in the series. Thus put Scottie's physical condition in doubt.

With the scheduled 10-day training set to start on June 21 (next week), Cone, who had shown worried and bothered in his body language during in a recent interview and is wishing and hoping the former Perpetual Help Altas' swingman catch his early recovery in time before the national team leaves for Europe.

"We're hoping he can get healthy by the time we leave for Europe with Gilas, He's such an important part of Gilas. Hopefully, we can get him healthy and ready to go. That has been our prime concern so far. Getting him ready for Gilas," from the sound of it, Cone is really worried.

Gilas have exactly 10-days to train and prepare for the OQT, that included a couple of tune matches against Poland and Turkiye. Cone and his generational squad are set to fly first to the Polish capital Warsaw on the 26th of June for a couple of tune-up matches before heading Istanbul on the 29th for three-day training camp, wherein Gilas will be pitted against Turkiyes' 19-under team and 21-under squad, before facing Turkiye's men's national team.

Well, it seems Cone is prepared for any eventual such as these. Previously, we have a 12-man line-up, Cone increased it to 14 with additional of the veteran Japeth Aguilar and the youthful Mason Amos. And just as he expected, Japeth and Mason, are reserve players and both rose from the list into the regular line-up. Aguilar replaced Malonzo, who's suffering a calf injury on this left hamstring. While Amos took A.J Edu's forward position. The 6"10' Edu, who hasn't played even during

Gilas' Asia Cup qualifying windows last month, is still hurting from a bum knee.

Should Gilas' losses Scottie, Cone is left to struggle finding an able replacement that would carry out his play book to spearhead the triangle offense. But I believed that the American mentor has a lot of choice to make. There's even one clamor suggesting the possible inclusion of the high-leaping and Korean basketball League star Renz Abando, who was formally included in the Strong Group Athletics (SGA) that will represent the country in the coming 43rd Jones Cup in Taipei, Taiwan two weeks from now.

Another suggestion has been sent as possible replacement, is former Gilas and another KBL star R.J Abarrientos, who by the way, is the nephew of the disbanded Alaska Milk's point-guard and the Flying A, Johnny Abarrientos. RJ is also included in the SGA squad bound for Taiwan, Other former Gilas standout included in the SGA squad are Jordan Heading and Ange Kuame (6-11), who saw action for national team that won the Gold medal in last year's Asian Games in Hangshou, China.

Meanwhile, Knowing the value of young and talented players and would be the future of Gilas program. Tim Cone recently shared a valuable lessons to the Gilas' U-18 men's team in their preparation for the FIBA U18 Asia Cup SEABA Qualifying round this July. You might raised some eye-brow, what he's got to do with the U18?. Well, for everybody's information, Cone is SBP and Gilas' program director.

If everybody would still remember, following the Cone's appointment as the national's head coach, he's also given a task of laying down a program, that would insure a possible recruitment of potentials talents to be included in the pool as far as training and preparation for international competition and smooth flow and turn over of players into the Gilas Pilipinas men's national team.