In an unexpected turn of events, veteran players Calvin Abueva and Terrence Romeo will not be able to participate in the upcoming 19th Asian Games due to last-minute changes in the Gilas Pilipinas lineup.
Gilas head coach Tim Cone announced yesterday that new players would be added to the Gilas Pilipinas roster, including CJ Perez, Chris Ross, Kevin Alas, and Arvin Tolentino.
"So, he (Alfrancis Chua) calls all four players, and they all agreed. And those four players are Chris Ross, Kevin Alas, Alvin Tolentino, and CJ [Perez] who has returned," Cone explained.
They will be replacing Romeo, Abueva, Mo Tautuaa, and Jason Perkins, after the Asian Games organizers rejected their participation in the tournament.
Veteran player Marcio Lassiter will also join Gilas in Hangzhou, China, as a replacement for RR Pogoy, who is unable to play due to health reasons.
Coach Tim Cone clarified that out of the 60 players initially listed, only Romeo and Tautuaa were included, along with collegiate and overseas players. As a result, the management included Abueva and Perkins in the initial appeal to the Hangzhou Asian Games Organizing Committee.
However, the organizers approved a second pool consisting of only 37 players, excluding Abueva, Romeo, Perkins, and Tautuaa.
"So, what happened later, about five days ago, we were told that there is another list that was submitted. It is a list of 37 players, and on that list, Mo and Terrence, and even Stanley [Pringle] that we had as our ultimate, were not on the new list that was submitted," he added.
Currently, Gilas is awaiting the final decision from the Asian Games organizers before releasing the official roster.
