Prior to the start of the competition, scores of Filipino basketball enthusiasts were looking forward to a semi-final appearance and settle for at least the fourth place. Such was a realistic expectation. However, as the tournament progressed, that semi-final dream had been slowly slipping through the Gilas’ hands. Injuries to JV Casio, JR Cawaling and Marcio Lassiter were already a concern for the coaching staff right before the opening tiff. Furthermore, the recent addition of Chris Lutz and import Milan Vucicevic was feared to disrupt the fluidity of the offensive patterns. In other words, the potential problems were already assessed beforehand. But how come the coaching staff were not able to find solutions to these issues?

I understand that the recently concluded Champions’ Cup is part of the learning process to achieve the teams’ ultimate goals of grabbing a medal in the Asian Games and an Olympic berth in next year’s continental qualifiers. However, injuries and unfamiliarity should not be made as scapegoats because these may happen in the actual competitions. No matter what were the reasons for the debacle in the Doha joust, RP-Smart Gilas finished seventh, no excuses!

Photo Courtesy: Spufalcons.com

After Chris Tiu and Chris Lutz, another Chris has been on the radar of the Smart Gilas national team. Chris Banchero, a Fil-Italian guard who had been making waves in the US NCAA Division II the past season is the latest prospect of the national team. He was invited by coach Rajko Toroman in the team’s recent training in Las Vegas and created immediate impact on the team with his decent performance.

Banchero stands 6-foot-1 and plays as point guard for the Seattle Pacific University Falcons, an NCAA Division II school. As a junior this past season, he was highly regarded by the National Association of Basketball Coaches  (NABTC) for his superb performance  by leading his team to a 22-6 record. He topped his team in scoring by averaging 19.6 per game on a 52% field goal accuracy! Besides, he has proven to be a clutch player by hitting geme winning baskets at least twice the past season. His defensive acumen as well makes him a complete player. In fact, he ranked 13^th in the league in steals at 1.3 per outing. With these, he was selected to the NCAA Division II All-America team by the NABTC.

Another Chris, another quality player for the national squad.

Photo Courtesy: Fullertontitans.com

It’s good to hear that new recruit Marcio Lassiter has been playing well with the Smart Gilas team in 3 games so far. At first, I was not agreeable to the addition of Lassiter because the team has already been loaded with quality guards and also the anticipated arrival of Chris Lutz might suffocate the back court rotation of the team. But things have blended well with Marcio’s presence. His addition is a big boost to the national squad.

I would have liked to watch the Gilas games against Qatar last January 8 and 9 but I could not find any link to the live streaming video. I didn’t expect it to be shown on local TV either. So, I just went through the forums to keep me abreast with the exhibition games and I kept an eye on Marcio. As reported, Lassiter played well against Qatar. He scored 8 points in the first game and 3 in the second game. But his presence especially on defense in the perimeter has overshadowed his single digit output in both games.

Lassiter stands 6-foot-2 and used to play as a shooting guard in his college team Cal State Fullerton Titans. During his stint with the Titans for two seasons, he averaged 40.9 percent from the field and 33.9 percent from the three point area. His assets are his quickness and agility with a good touch from beyond the arc. He was born on May 16, 1987.

With Marcio’s enthusiasm to play with the national team, he is definitely marching for  flag and country.

Photo Courtesy: Herdzone.cstv.com

Another US NCAA standout expected to formally join Smart Gilas by mid next year is Chris Lutz. He is likely to come back to the Philippines by end of April or May. Chris was born on February 11, 1985 to American father Wayne and Filipina mother Luzviminda. The six-foot-three senior off-guard from Marshall University in Huntington, West Virginia is a three-point specialist and may be the country’s ‘next Allan Caidic’.

Like Caidic, he shoots from beyond the arc in bunches with accuracy at almost 40 % in the Division I of the US NCAA. As a freshman playing for Purdue University, Lutz played an average of 30 minutes a game and hit 9.2 points. On his sophomore year, his playing time dipped  to 21.9 minutes that lead to decrease in his scoring at 6.1 per game. Chris then decided to transfer to Marshall University . He sat out for a year as per NCAA eligibility rules. On his junior year playing for Marshall he scored an average of 10.7 points an outing in 27.6 minutes.

Lutz, however, may not be like Allan Caidic in a sense that the former is right –handed. Nonetheless, Lutz is a great find that surely adds to Smart Gilas perimeter firepower and may be considered as ‘the next Allan Caidic’.

Pringle can add to Coach Rajko Toroman’s luxury in rotating quality backcourt personnel.  At present, Smart Gilas’ backcourt rotation include Mark Barocca, JV Casio, Chris Tiu, JR Cawaling and RJ Razul. Another Fil-am to have confirmed to join is Chris Lutz, a 6-foot-3 shooter in the mold of Allan Caidic.  Lutz is on his senior year in the US NCAA and is expected to come by end of April next year.

Stanley Pringle’s basketball resume is without question. He last played for his alma matter in his junior year. He averaged 12.75 points shooting 45.3% from the field and ranked 6^th in the Big Ten in three point shooting percentage with 45 %. Besides, he owns the highest vertical leaping ability in the team at 37 inches. Likewise, he was described as one of the quickest and fastest players in the conference.

With the national squad already fully loaded with guards, will Stanley Pringle join Smart Gilas?