THE youth is the hope of the future, indeed.
Gilas Youth's U16 Boys caught the last bus to the 2024 Fiba U17 Basketball World Cup with a impassioned 64-59 comeback win over Japan.
But for the foreseeable future, head coach Josh Reyes' young crew will first square off with Australia in the 2023 Fiba Asia U16 Cup semifinals for a spot in the gold medal match.
READ: Gilas Youth books ticket to Fiba U17 World Cup after great comeback vs Japan
From homegrown talent to foreign-based aces, meet the 12 young cagers who etched their names in Gilas history and will soon make their mark in the world stage.
KIEFFER ALAS
Hailing from a renowned sporting clan through his multi-titled father Louie and national team cager Kevin, Kieffer Alas has always had the basketball DNA in him.
The young Alas is a 6-foot-2 De La Salle Zobel standout who already carries an abundant mix of local and international playing experience at a tender age of 16.
Just four years ago, Alas was tapped as an import by Indonesia's Indo Muda U-13 team in the 8th Asia Pacific Basketball Youth Cup.
Ahead of their semis clash with the Aussies in this year's U16 Asia Cup, Alas is already the tournament's fourth-best scorer with 18.6 points and 10.6 boards in five games.
KURT VELASQUEZ
Offensive consistency at a high level has been a strong suit of Kurt Velasquez in Gilas U16's Asian tilt thus far.
The University of Santo Tomas talent is one of four players listed below six feet (5-foot-11), but his commanding presence has been particularly important for Batang Gilas.
Velasquez breached double figures in four of their five games at the U17 Asia Cup, making him the team's second-leading scorer behind Alas with an average of 11.6 points.
JOAQUIN LUDOVICE
A key breakout star in Gilas U16's dream run is Joaquin Ludovice, the team's third-leading offensive ace with 11.2 points in their first five games.
He might be the shortest player in the current Gilas U16 squad at 5-foot-9, but the UST cager — who is also the team's oldest by just nine days — has been nothing short of sensational as exemplified by his fast-paced on-court exploits.
The 16-year-old cager had a stellar 25-piece in Batang Gilas' historic romp over Korea to reach the quarterfinals and end the country's youth-level Korean Curse.
BONN DAJA
Davaoeño ace Bonn Daja is one of Gilas Youth's finest homegrown stars who have shone bright in the team's historic Asian tilt.
At 6-foot-4, Daja's basketball experience was built in his hometown of Davao where he studies (Rizal Memorial Colleges) and played Fiba 3x3 tournaments back in 2022 (Davao Bulldogs).
Notably, Daja is the lone center in Reyes' 12-man roster and has proven his mastery of the big man craft in the international stage.
SAMUEL ALEGRE
One of two 15-year-olds in the Gilas Youth roster is Samuel Alegre, who is on his first-ever national team stint for the Philippines in the U17 Asia Cup.
The 6-foot-1 star was not part of the team that won the SEABA tournament in July to reach the Asian tilt, but has had his fair share of valuable minutes in Gilas Youth's stellar run thus far.
Alegre's budding basketball career has taken off abroad at the Northwood High School in Irvine, California.
PAUL DIAO
Gilas Youth's tallest player in the Asian tilt at 6-foot-6 is Paul Diao.
Diao currently plays for West Campus High School in Sacramento, California and also joins Alegre as part of Tumakbo United Basketball, a North American-based Filipino grassroots basketball program in North California and Chicago.
Moreover, Diao is a native of Iligan City in Lanao del Norte.
CLETZ DAVID AMOS
A top-tier talent in his own right, CJ Amos has been blazing his own trail in the U16 level.
The 16-year-old younger brother of Ateneo and Gilas hotshot Mason Amos share the same beginnings as standout Fil-Aussie basketball prospects from Brisbane State High School.
Both have broke through the Gilas rosters at such early ages, and CJ has also quickly made his presence felt as one of the bright spots in Gilas Youth's opening loss to China with 13 points and four boards.
ELIJAH WILLIAMS
Another foreign-based debutant in the young 12-man squad for Gilas is Elijah Williams.
Williams is a 16-year-old hooper who plays at Hudson Catholic Regional High School in Hudson County, New Jersey.
The 5-foot-11 ace, one of four sub-six feet players in the current roster, has played 15 minutes on average in the Asian tilt and was also not in the SEABA tourney lineup.
EDRYN MORALES
Just like Williams, Edryn Morales is also a New Jersey-based high school cager.
One of the taller guys in the squad at 6-foot-4, Morales took the first shots in his young career at Manville High School in Somerset County, New Jersey.
He has only seen roughly 17 minutes of play in the Asian tilt and had his best outing against Korea with nine points and five boards.
IRUS CHUA
16-year-old Irus Chua has already made quite some noise in the local basketball scene at a fairly young age.
Chua has committed to De La Salle Zobel together with his good pal Kieffer Alas, whom he also shared the global stage with at the NBA Academy Asia Development Camp back in June.
And with a handful of MVP nods already under his belt, an unprecedented feat in Chua's budding career is his outstanding 121-point performance for Elite Philippines at the Milcu Sports Got Skills Basketball League.
NOAH BANAL
Gilas Youth's youngest ace in the Asian tilt at 15 years old is Noah Banal.
Banal, a 6-foot-1 homegrown talent, comes from the Malayan High School of Science in Manila
In the U16 Asia Cup, Banal has been held to roughly nine minutes of action but has notably pitched in 2.8 boards on average in five games thus far.
JAIME GOMEZ DE LIANO
Making his own mark after fellow 'JGDL' basketball brothers Juan, Javi, Joe, and Jordi, Jaime Gomez de Liaño is clearly a rising star in his own right.
The towering 6-foot-5 ace from the heralded UP Integrated School looks to continue his sporting clan's exceptional emergence in the local sporting scene.
From being part of the Gilas Youth's SEABA tilt sweep ahead of the U16 Asia Cup, Gomez de Liaño has pitched in key scoring efforts in the team's group phase stint including a near-perfect shooting night against Malaysia.
Get more of the latest sports news & updates on SPIN.ph
NOTICE ON UNAUTHORIZED AND UNLAWFUL USE, PUBLICATION, AND/OR DISSEMINATION OF SPIN.PH CONTENT: Please be notified that any unauthorized and unlawful use, publication, and/or dissemination of Spin.ph’s content and/or materials is a direct violation of its legal and exclusive rights to the same, and shall be subject to appropriate legal action/s.
