FIL-AM forward Caelan Tiongson is not going as part of the Gilas Pilipinas team to the 20th Asian Games in Nagoya, Japan.
The 6-foot-4 Tiongson begged off from joining the national team for the first time owing to a personal matter.
“Unfortunately, hindi na siya nakapag-attend ng practices,” a Gilas insider confirmed a day before the team leaves for South Korea to play two friendlies prior to the Asiad.
The 34-year-old Rain or Shine stalwart was the third player to excuse himself from after Jason Perkins of Phoenix and TNT’s Jordan Heading.
Gilas' Asian games team
In their absence, coach Tim Cone has added Justin Arana, Justine Baltazar, and RJ Abarrientos to the FIBA World Cup 2027 Asian qualifiers roster to help defend the gold in the Asiad.
Arana, Baltazar, and Abarrientos had their first practice with the Asian Games side on Tuesday, although the 6-foot-7 Arana has been training with them before being shipped to the WC qualifiers side when forward Carl Tamayo suffered a grade 2 sprained ankle in the game against Jordan.
The national team is set to leave for South Korea on Wednesday where it will play a pair of friendlies against its Koreans counterpart on Sept. 4 and 6.
Gilas will then leave for Japan on Sept. 7, three days before the basketball competition in the Asiad kicks off.
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