Basketball, Pinoy’s favorite pastime, has given the country’s sports aficionados something to discuss about after the fruitless stint of the Gilas Pilipinas national men’s basketball team in the recent FIBA World Cup in China.
Day-after geniuses and self-declared analysts-experts sprouted not just in barber shops and the neighborhood sari-sari store but also in social media where there is so much fuss about the debacle suffered by the nation’s basketball heroes.
Nevertheless, breaking down the national team’s stint in the World Cup is actually not surprising. It’s expected. This is the world stage where the best teams in the world compete. Based on paper, the Philippines is no. 31 in the world. For the record, there are 32 teams that qualified in the World Cup and to be in that field with a no. 31 ranking is already an accomplishment of sorts.
The team played a total of 3 group matches and lost all three to world no. 13 Italy, no. 2 Serbia and no. 39 Angola (one of two lower-rung teams that beat the Philippines). In the consolation round, the Philippines lost to no. 51 Tunisia and no. 27 Iran to end the campaign dead last.
If at all, the players and the coaching staff deserve some recognition from their countrymen for the supreme sacrifice of playing for the flag. These men are professionals but they accommodated yet additional burden in order to represent the country. Everyone must realize that while it may be a privilege, it’s not easy being a national player. The pressures on the shoulders from the nation’s expectations could be so much to bear. In this level of competitions, a lot of factors come into play. Everyone who expects to excel in the competition must play 100 percent every single time which, given the law of averages in basketball, is almost impossible unless the level of play is several notches higher and playing below par at that standard could still be better when ranged against a team rated notches below like the Philippines.
Success rate in the World Cup admittedly is high and the Philippines is not yet in that strata to be competitive withe the world powers.
It is foolish to be expecting too much and even more foolish to be cursing the team’s performance.
Meantime, it is best to dust off the beating in China and focus on the next battle ahead–the Southeast Asian Games this November. This is the playground that the Philippines rightfully reigns and as such, cannot insanely afford to lose.
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