NOW a full-fledged Filipino, Ange Kouame understood that comparisons with former Gilas Pilipinas naturalized players Marcus Douthit and Andray Blatche are inevitable.
"I actually feel the pressure," the 6-foot-10 Ivory Coast-born center said in an appearance on the 2OT x Crossover podcast.
Douthit was the steady hand for the Rajko Toroman-coached national team from 2010 to 2013 and backstopped Gilas in its silver-medal finish in the 2013 Fiba Asia Championships in Manila.
The last time he suited up for the Philippines was in the 2015 Southeast Asian Games, helping the Kiefer Ravena-led squad win the gold medal in Singapore.
Meanwhile, Blatche represented the country starting in the 2014 Fiba World Cup in Spain and has been a staple of the national team up to the 2019 Fiba World Cup in China.
The nine-year NBA veteran won a silver medal in the 2015 Fiba Asia Championship in Changsha, China and was a part of the gold medal-winning team in the 2017 SEABA Championship.
But rather than be overwhelmed by what he has to live up to, Kouame is maintaining an even keel.
The Ateneo center said he wants to focus on what Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP) program director Tab Baldwin wants from him that trying to live up on the expectations of others.
"It depends on whether I put myself on other people’s thoughts or play the way I always play," he said. "If people have their eyes on me and believe that I have potential, I have to believe in my potential too and then go with the flow."
"I don’t really wanna try to compare myself to my kuyas. I’ll try to go with the flow, and may God help me in this."
Kouame is set to make his Gilas debut in the third window of the 2021 Fiba Asia Cup qualifiers in June in Clark, where the Philippines will face Korea on June 16, Indonesia on June 18, and Korea again on June 20.
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