Gilas Pilipinas will have a full 12-man roster for the Asian Games.
Calvin Oftana will be stepping in as the final piece of Gilas’ lineup, head coach Tim Cone said, a couple of days before their back-to-back campaign starts.
Oftana will take the roster spot of naturalized star Justin Brownlee, who is seemingly still recovering from several injuries.
‘Calvin Oftana is stepping in as our 12th man. He is arriving this afternoon, we hope in time to make our practice schedule today,’ Cone told Philstar.com in a Viber message.
‘Calvin was always on the list to play, but we were uncertain of his health status. He has since returned to TNT’s practice and is good to go,’ he added.
The sweet-shooting forward has also missed several games both in the PBA and for Gilas as well due to injuries.
And it seems Oftana is healthy enough to step in.
Cone stressed that he sees a seamless transition for the scorer.
‘Because of the system we are running and his previous experience in the window teams, he’s a plug-and-play player and will fit right in.’
Prior to Oftana’s entry, the defending Asian Games champion squad is made up of Robert Bolick, Sedrick Barefield, Adrian Nocum, Jerrick Ahanmisi, RJ Abarrientos, Don Trollano, Justine Baltazar, Justin Arana, Zav Lucero, Brandon Ganuelas-Rosser and Brandon Bates.
Gilas won the 2023 Asian Games gold medal in Hangzhou, giving the Philippines its first gold in the Asiad men’s basketball tournament in 61 years.