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MANILA, Philippines – Making a deep run in the FIBA World Cup will be a tall order for Gilas Pilipinas, but qualifying for the Paris Olympics is a realistic goal.
The Philippines needs to finish as the best-placed Asian team in the World Cup to book a ticket to Paris as it vies for the coveted Olympic berth against China, Iran, Japan, Jordan, and Lebanon.
“Our objective here is to get to the Olympics in 2024. That’s the goal, that’s the dream,” said national team head coach Chot Reyes.
Among all the participating Asian squads, Gilas Pilipinas is the only team grouped with just one top 20 nation following the World Cup draw on Saturday, April 29.
Ranked No. 40 in the world, the Philippines will go up against No. 10 Italy, No. 23 Dominican Republic, and No. 41 Angola.
The rest are bundled with two top 20 squads.
China is with No. 6 Serbia, No. 20 Puerto Rico, and No. 62 South Sudan in Group B; Japan with No. 3 Australia, No. 11 Germany, and No. 24 Finland in Group E; Iran with No. 1 Spain, No. 13 Brazil, and No. 42 Ivory Coast in Group G; and Lebanon with No. 5 France, No. 15 Canada, and No. 29 Latvia in Group H.
Jordan faces arguably the deadliest foes as it got bunched with two top 10 teams in Group C with No. 2 United States, No. 9 Greece, and No. 26 New Zealand.
“It’s important that our other Asian competitors are in tough groups because the best Asian team is the one which goes to the Olympics,” said Reyes.
“I think China is in a pretty good group. They drew South Sudan. Iran was the one that drew Ivory Coast. Those are teams that they can beat, I think.”
In the previous World Cup, Iran clinched the Olympic spot with two wins in five games, beating China in a tiebreaker.
Reyes looks to do the same with Gilas Pilipinas, which has not qualified for the Olympics since the 1972 Munich Games.
“Hopefully, we can get a win or two in this World Cup to give us a chance to qualify for the Olympics,” said Reyes. – Rappler.com
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