When will Clarkson join his Gilas brothers?
Gilas Pilipinas coach Chot Reyes bared back in February that the Samahang Basketball ng Pilipinas (SBP) is banking on getting Jordan Clarkson on board at least a month before the FIBA World Cup tips off in August.
Back then, Reyes was hoping the NBA veteran could join Gilas mid-June or early July, which means time is running out as far as the veteran tactician’s timeframe is concerned. It also means Gilas and the SBP are in a virtual race against time to bring Clarkson in and get him practicing with the national team.
So, what’s the deal with Clarkson? To be more specific, when will he be joining Gilas?
It appears no one from Gilas and the SBP know the answers—at least not yet.
They sure hope to remove the uncertainty soon, especially as Gilas is now preparing for its tune-up games in Estonia. Come early August, they plan to go to China for more mini-tournaments before coming back home for the actual games.
SBP says they're still fine-tuning the details as they continue to get in touch with one of the NBA’s most creative scorers.
“We’re still talking to him. Timing talaga. I haven’t gotten the latest update,” admitted SBP president Al Panlilio to News5’s Martie Bautista. “The last time I spoke to (Gilas team manager) Butch Antonio, who spoke to him, Chot was also supposed to speak to him personally last week."
"We’re asking sana if he can join us last week of July ‘cause we want him to be part of the tournaments in China,” added Panlilio.
The takeaway here is that SBP is trying, and they are probably pulling out all the stops. In fact, Panlilio even made an assurance as to Clarkson’s commitment to the national team for the FIBA World Cup.
“Of course, he has committed to play, but we’re really just finalizing the scheduling.”
They need to act fast. Clock is ticking.
(With reports from Martie Bautista, News5)
(GM)