Joshua Munzon and Alvin Pasaol are likely to suit up for the Philippines in the FIBA 3×3 Olympic Qualifying Tournament slated March 18 to 22 in India.
Chooks-to-Go Pilipinas 3×3 Commissioner and program director Eric Altamirano said Munzon and Pasaol are shoo-ins for the OQT by virtue of being the country’s two highest-ranked players.
FIBA rules state that OQT participants must have at least top 10 players on its roster. Munzon tallied 475,860 points while Pasaol produced 420,940 as of the FIBA cutoff date Oct. 31.
“Obviously, we need to have the top ten players in the country, especially the top two. Joshua and Alvin are most likely going to be part of the team,” Altamirano said during a thanksgiving event celebrated the country’s OQT entry Saturday night.
Other players who are in the country’s top 10 are Santi Santillan (349,220), Karl Dehesa (339,860), Troy Rike (333,580), Dylan Ababou (296,380), Chris de Chavez (262,820), Franky Johnson (261,990), Roosevelt Adams (209,220), and Leo de Vera (161,670).
Two slots are given to the Top 50 players or Philippine players with minimum number of ranking points, though Chooks and the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas will seek clarification on both criterias.
All Top 50 players participated in the first season of the Chooks 3×3 league which staged four tournaments.
“From there, we need to clarify the rules regarding who can be the rest of the team,” said Altamirano. “As soon as we clarify the rule in terms of the composition of the team, we are not discounting the possibility of getting players outside of our league, including the PBA.”
The Philippines earned a slot in the OQT after making the Top 24 rankings. The Filipino cagers were bracketed in Pool C alongside France, Slovenia, Qatar, and the Dominican Republic. (Jonas Terrado)
