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    How Gilas can clinch an Olympic spot through the World Cup

    To be the best Asian team, Gilas will have to do better than Iran, Japan, Lebanon, Jordan and China. Doable?
    Aug 10, 2023
    jordan clarkson gilas pilipinas lebanon japan china
    PHOTO: fiba.basketball

    GILAS Pilipinas is in the final stretch of its preparations for the 2023 Fiba Basketball World Cup where it will be on a collision course against some of the best teams in the globe, particularly Italy, Dominican Republic, and Angola.

    Aside from the ambitious bid of advancing past the group stage of the world championships of basketball, Gilas will also be gunning for a spot in the 2024 Olympics since the World Cup serves as a qualifier for the Paris Games.

    Head coach Chot Reyes had previously mentioned that making it to the Olympics is also a goal of Gilas Pilipinas in the World Cup. The Philippine men’s basketball team last played in the Olympics in the 1972 Games in Munich.

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      So how can Gilas qualify for the Paris Olympics? Below is the breakdown.

      Best Asian team

      According to the qualification principles of the International Olympic Committee and Fiba, the best Asian team in the World Cup will make it to the Paris Olympics. For the purpose of determining the qualified teams in the Olympics, Australia and New Zealand, which have been competing in the Asian zone during Fiba tournaments, are classified in the Oceania region in this case, and not in Asia, where one ticket to Paris is at stake.

      Also qualifying for the Olympics through the World Cup are two teams from the Americas, two from Europe, and one from Africa. France already has one seat being the host country. Four slots will also be coming from the Fiba Olympic Qualifying Tournaments in 2024, completing the 12-team cast in Paris.

      How to become the best Asian team

      Of course, one way to become the best Asian team is for Gilas Pilipinas to go as deep into the tournament as possible. Two wins in Group A where Gilas will take on Italy, Dominican Republic, and Angola could be the way for the Philippines to advance into the second round, and a possible outright ticket to the Olympics.

      Five other teams, however, are also vying to become the best Asian team in the tournament in China, Jordan, Japan, Iran, and Lebanon. But their Olympic hopes, like Gilas, will also be difficult.

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      Iran, the best placed Asian team in the Fiba rankings at No. 22, is in Group G along with world No. 1 and defending champion Spain, Brazil, and Ivory Coast.

      China, ranked 27th in the world, is bracketed with No. 6 Serbia along with Puerto Rico and South Sudan in Group B.

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      Jordan perhaps has the toughest road among the Asian squads as they are in Group C with United States and Greece, which are at No. 2 and No. 9 in the world. New Zealand is also in that pool.

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      Japan is with Olympic bronze medalist Australia, Germany, and Finland in Group E, while Lebanon will be battling France, Canada, and Latvia in Group H. All teams in both groups, with the exception of Lebanon, have current NBA players in their extended roster.

      The second round will feature the top two teams from each of the eight groups playing against two more squads to contest the eight seats in the final round where knockout matches beginning with the quarterfinals will be held.

      In the event Gilas makes it past the group stage, the Nationals, being in Group A, would play matches against the top two in Group B. They will form Group I, with a win or two in the second phase could bring the Philippines to the knockout stage.

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      17th to 32nd classification phase

      If no Asian team advances to the second round, the Olympic berth for the continent would come down to the classification phase of the World Cup for the 17th to 32nd places.

      This was the same case in 2019 when Iran made it to the Tokyo Olympics by finishing 23rd, just one spot ahead of host China.

      Just like Iran in the last World Cup when it beat the Philippines in their final match of the tournament to clinch a berth in Tokyo, a win in the 17th to 32nd classification phase could be enough for a spot in Paris.

      If it ends up in this classification round, one scenario that can occur is for Gilas Pilipinas to face China for that Olympic berth in Paris. Bottom teams in Groups A and B where the Philippines and China are included respectively will be playing against each other in Group M of the classification phase.

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      FIBA OQT

      If the Philippines fails to cop an Olympic seat via the World Cup, Gilas has one last opportunity in 2024 with the Fiba Olympic Qualifying Tournament. In 2021, the Philippines also took part in the Fiba OQT in Belgrade where it lost to Serbia and Dominican Republic.

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