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    Fiba eligibility rules no longer just about lineage, passport requirement

    Baldwin explains Fiba treats each eligibility appeal on a case-to-case basis, often putting more weight on 'basketball heritage' than lineage
    Dec 6, 2020

    REMY Martin, Sage Tolentino, and the other young, foreign-based prospects with Filipino lineage will always be welcome additions to the Gilas Pilipinas program in a perfect world.

    But the fact of the matter is we're not living in one, and Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP) program director Tab Baldwin is realistic enough to acknowledge that not all overseas-based who have Filipino blood will be granted a chance to play for the country in the long run.

    "The problem with a lot of those guys is just because young men and young women have Filipino lineage and Filipino bloodlines, that does not make them Fiba-eligible," he told Coaches Unfiltered.

    Baldwin explained that Fiba's eligibility rules is actually more complex than meets the eye, meaning that acquiring a Philippine passport before the age 16 does not automatically guarantee local status for Fiba-sanctioned tournaments.

    "Fiba actually makes a decision on every single case irrespective of the passport age acquisition," he said. "They can take someone who acquired the passport at the age 15 and they can say they're ineligible cause they don't believe the basketball heritage is Filipino. Maybe they were born in the United States and never been in the Philippines."

    "When you go to make a case, you make a case that the young man's basketball heritage is Filipino. It's the same case with someone who's not Filipino, but lived here from an early age and learned the basketball here and didn't get the passport after the age 16. Fiba could potentially look at that and grant a person like that Filipino elibigibilty as a local."

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    Baldwin cited the case of Tolentino as an example. The Hawaii-born center was unable to acquire his Philippine passport before he turned 16.

    "The 16th birthday went by without Sage getting his passport, but I understand that the SBP is fully aware of the situation with Sage. They've spoken with the family and I actually went over to Hawaii last year and met Sage and his family, tried to do some of the spade work upfront in getting the family interested in the Filipino environment," he said.

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    Though discussions were made, nothing really came out of it as Tolentino now heads to Auburn for college, Baldwin said.

    "It's really difficult where that will go with Sage," admitted Baldwin. "We wish him well. He's a very talented player, but I don't know if well ever have our hooks into him or not."
    It further emphasizes how complicated the eligibility issues the Philippines face with Fiba.

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      But more than anything, it will all boil down to Fiba's decision on each case, where it often puts more weight on a player's 'basketball heritage' than his lineage, as well as on the player's desire to represent the country.

      "It comes down to Fiba adjudicating each case," he said. "I think there's some fairness in that, so we can’t just cry they’re Filipino and they belong here. There has to be some commitment."

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