Not strongest but best available, coach says of PHL’s 3x3 basketball team

The Philippine team headed for the 2017 FIBA 3x3 World Cup may not be the strongest, but this young talented pool is still capable of pulling off a win against their more veteran foes, its coach said on Wednesday.

National coach Eric Altamirano on Wednesday said the team composed of Jeron Teng, Kiefer Ravena, Kobe Paras, and JR Quiñahan is already the best roster the country assemble for the torunament in Nantes, France.

"Strongest? Maybe not, but we were able to assemble the best available players," Altamirano said during the send-off ceremony in Pasig City.

"I think the team is ready, we’ve prepared very well for this coming FIBA World. I’m really confident these players will really represent the country really well," he added.

Altamirano said his players are capable of playing both offense and defense despite being one of the younger teams in Pool B of the tournament which will run from June 17 to 21.

"Obviously the team is very young, bata pa sila compared sa kalaban nila sa FIBA World, but in terms of skills naman halos lahat ng players natin they’re all multi-skilled. They can play inside, they can play outside," Altamirano said.

Teng, a two-time UAAP champion and former Mythical Five member, said the pressure felt by the team helped him and former UAAP most valuable player Ravena go all-out in the FIBA cup.

"May pressure but pressure kasi sometimes helps in order to perform better. Kami ni Kiefer, we go all-out when it comes to playing for the country," Teng said.

The Philippines will have their hands full in the tournament as they face former FIBA 3x3 European champions Romania and Slovenia, host nation France, and El Salvador.

Asked what preparations were made against their taller opponents, Altamirano replied that his wards will be coming to the court “blindly” since no scouting reports were made.

“Wala kaming idea… Walang videos or any YouTube games na puwede namin panoorin. We know the countries that we are going to play sa group namin, but other than that talagang we are coming in there blindly,” he said.

Nonetheless, Ravena assured the Filipino basketball fans that they will do their best in finishing the tournament with a gold medal.

“This is an opportunity for us to showcase yung talent nga na pinagmamalaki natin pagdating sa 3x3,” Ravena said, recognizing the efforts of those who helped the team prepare for their FIBA stint.

Paras, for his part, said the team has been improving their chemistry, practice their plays, and get used to court and league rules.

“Just practicing, getting used to the rules, getting used to all the, like yung court na lalaruin namin. It’s gonna be a different court. It’s not like rubber or wood, it’s a different material. Kailangan lang namin masanay,” he said. — NB/BAP, GMA News