Gilas Pilipinas’ Jamie Malonzo.–FIBA PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines–Jamie Malonzo and Geo Chiu have been added to the list of players Gilas Pilipinas will send to Thailand for next month’s Southeast Asian Games.
Sources confirmed the inclusion of the former Barangay Ginebra forward and the current center of Abra in the MPBL after Gilas ruled out Justin Brownlee amid reports that naturalized players are barred from taking part in the 5-on-5 event.
READ: Back with Gilas, Jamie Malonzo moves on from brief B.League stint
Thirdy Ravena, Ray Parks Jr., Matthew Wright, Jason Brickman, Remy Martin, Dave Ildefonso, Kymani Ladi, Mike Phillips, Brandon Ganuelas-Rosser and Veejay Pre are still on coach Norman Black’s squad, barring any changes.
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Malonzo is currently with the national team pool for the upcoming two matches against Guam in the first window of the Fiba World Cup Asian Qualifiers.
Chiu, on the other hand, is in the thick of Abra’s campaign in the MPBL Playoffs and is set to make the jump to the PBA afterwards after being selected first overall by Terrafirma.
READ: Mike Phillips says yes in heartbeat to Gilas SEA Games squad
But the SEA Games will likely prolong Chiu’s highly anticipated debut in the big league.
The eligibility status for the Games has caused confusion in past months, with reports of the host either imposing Fiba regulations or a passport-only rule.
Brownlee and Ange Kouame were initially tapped by Black for the Games, but Kouame was now placed in the 3×3 competition with Joseph Eriobu, Joseph Sedurifa and Janrey Pasaol.
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