TAB Baldwin was quick to defend the presence of several Ateneo call-ups in the current Gilas Pilipinas pool, saying college players who are familiar with his system are helping the others in the learning process.
Nine of the 11 new faces invited to the training camp at Inspire Sports Academy all came from Ateneo, where Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP) program director Baldwin is the concurrent head coach.
Leading the list were Blue Eaglets standouts Lebron Lopez and Josh Lazaro, who were joined by Blue Eagles' SJ Belangel, Gian Mamuyac, Chris Koon, Geo Chiu, Jason Credo, Troy Mallillin, and Kyle Ong.
Gilas pool mainstays who don or have donned the blue-and-white are Isaac Go, twins Matt and Mike Nieto, William Navarro, naturalization candidate Ange Kouame, and holdovers Dwight Ramos and Dave Ildefonso.
Some rival coaches aren't too happy with the set-up, saying Ateneo players being included in the national team practices enable the team to train while fellow UAAP teams are grounded by health protocols.
A few coaches have grumbled about it, never mind if there is no definite date pencilled for the return of UAAP men's basketball.
Baldwin, however, explained that having these Ateneo players in the Gilas practices aids in the familiarization process both with his system and coaching style which is crucial since this is easily the youngest Gilas pool ever.
"There are similarities [with how things are ran in Gilas and Ateneo] and it does give the Ateneo players a little bit of an advantage when it comes to recognition and comfort, both with the system and my coaching style," he told The Game.
Baldwin cited Mamuyac as an example.
The 6-foot-1 senior, who is set to be the captain of the Blue Eagles once the UAAP season resumes, is counted on to guide his younger peers, helping them adapt and understand the system better.
"He'll be the captain of the Ateneo team and it really is like having an Ateneo coach out there," the three-time UAAP champion coach said.
"There's a big question for him if he's gonna be elite enough to be in that roster, but certainly from the standpoint of contributing to the training environment, his familiarity and his comfort with what we do and how we do things, that really helps the other players, especially the younger players cause they need all the help they could get," he said.
Gilas is preparing for three competitions later this year: the third window of the 2021 Fiba Asia Cup qualifiers in Clark come June; the Fiba Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Belgrade in July; and the 2021 Fiba Asia Cup in Indonesia in August,
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.
