THE Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP) announced the appointment of Alfrancis Chua as program director and team manager for both the Gilas Pilipinas Youth and Men teams.
“I am very happy that Alfrancis is back with Gilas. I work well with him and our only objective is to elevate Philippine basketball,” said SBP president Al Panlilio in a statement released to media outlets.
“The SBP also extends our appreciation to San Miguel Corporation (SMC) chairman and chief executive officer Ramon Ang for supporting this decision to have Alfrancis help the program again.”
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Chua assumes the task in addition to his roles as SMC sports director, Barangay Ginebra San Miguel governor, and PBA vice-chairman.
Since being appointed to lead SMC’s basketball operations in 2015, Chua has helped Ginebra, San Miguel Beer, and Magnolia to a combined 15 championships in the PBA. He won the PBA Executive of the Year Award in 2018, 2021, and 2024.
As team manager for Gilas Men in the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games, he helped the Philippines end its six-decade wait for a basketball gold medal and the SBP is hopeful that similar success is on the horizon with his official return to the program.
"It was great having him on the bench motivating the players. He is such a great motivator. That's one of the things that we hope to enhance the program with his presence,” said Gilas coach Tim Cone.
“He has always been there for me to consult with and talk with. And of course, we had that great run in the Asian Games which was fantastic.”
Chua will immediately jump into the action as he will be with the team for the second window of the FIBA Asia Cup Qualifiers where Gilas takes on New Zealand on November 21 and Hong Kong on November 24.
“I’m happy I’ll be able to help Gilas in this capacity,” said Chua. “I thank boss RSA for giving me his blessing in taking this new role and I look forward to working with coach Tim and [Gilas Youth coach] LA [Tenorio].”
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