CAN free agent Robert Bolick play for Gilas Pilipinas in the February window of the 2023 Fiba World Cup Asian qualifiers?
Chot Reyes would love that, but he will have to give a hard pass for now.
"I'd love to have Robert Bolick in the lineup, but for now, because we're playing in three weeks, I think to be able to assimilate another variable into the mix is going to be very difficult," Reyes told Radyo5's Power and Play with Noli Eala.
'23 for '23'
Bolick was actually part of Reyes' famed '23-for-2023' cadets list back in 2018 that was scrapped after the mentor was replaced in the aftermath of the infamous brawl between Gilas and Australia at the Philippine Arena in Bulacan.
The No. 3 pick of the 2018 PBA Rookie Draft later became part of the Philippine team which competed in the 2019 Fiba World Cup and finished dead-last among 32 teams in China.
Reyes shared that Bolick did reach out to him and the two have been "in constant communication."
The 6-foot-1 point guard from San Beda is free to play for Gilas in this window since negotiations for his contract extension with NorthPort went have reached a stalemate. He is reportedly being courted by teams overseas, with squads in Japan and Taiwan inquiring about his availability.
He was not the first player to express his intentions to join the Gilas pool, Reyes admitted, but with the limited time that he has on hand, he is sticking to his guns and will only utilize players from TNT Tropang Giga to beef up the Gilas lineup.
"I know a lot of other players have reached out but for now, we're keeping it first to the players na magkakakilala na, yung TNT and Gilas, so isang integration lang ang pinaguusapan natin. It's going to be very difficult, at least for this window," he said.
After February, though, consider it a fair game for everyone else.
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