Japeth Aguilar insists he has nothing to prove after Gilas benching

Japeth Aguilar seemed to be playing with a chip on his shoulder in Barangay Ginebra's victory over GlobalPort on Saturday, leading the Kings with 21 points, six rebounds, two assists and two blocks.

 

The 6-foot-9 forward just came off a stint with Gilas Pilipinas in the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament, during which he played less than three minutes in the national team's two games.

 

Aguilar made it clear, though, that despite his spirited performance against the Batang Pier to open the Gin King's Governors' Cup campaign, he had nothing to prove.

 

"Wala naman. 'Yung sa Gilas naman, I try to put it behind me and try to move on na talaga," he said.

 

Aguilar had to man the frontline for Ginebra for most of the game, with starting center Greg Slaughter out with an ankle surgery and import Paul Harris leaving in the third period after hurting his hand.

 

He performed superbly in 24 minutes for the Kings, hitting 8-of-12 from the field and a perfect 5-of-5 from the free throw line. He turned the ball over twice but made up for it with four offensive boards to give Ginebra extra possessions.

 

Despite seeing little action in the Olympic qualifiers, Aguilar said he has gained a lot from participating in the Gilas training camp and playing against world-caliber teams in tuneup games.

 

"It’s a learning experience talaga, 'yung sa FIBA. Looking forward talaga ako dito sa Ginebra," he said, adding that he also picked up a few things from playing against NBA players like Omer Asik of Turkey, which Gilas faced twice in their buildup.

 

Asked if he is still open to play for the flag, Aguilar said everything is still up in the air until the future of the Gilas Pilipinas program has been determined by the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP).

 

"Hindi ko alam kung anong mangyayari sa program ng Philippines. If ever, we’ll see," he said. — Reuters