(From Philstar, by Joaquin Henson)
Smart-Gilas national basketball team coach Rajko Toroman said the other day Greg Slaughter is maturing to become a dominant force at the slot and the 6-11 Fil-Am center has improved dramatically since joining the elite squad.
Slaughter, 21, is redshirting at Ateneo this year to be eligible for the UAAP next season but his priority will remain Gilas. He previously saw action for the University of Visayas. His American father William is 6-3 and his Filipina mother Emma Fuentes, 5-7. Born in the US, Slaughter has lived the last few years in his mother’s home province of Cebu.
“Greg went up against seven-foot players in our recent Serbia games and held his own,” said Toroman. “He’s ready for the PBA right now. He’s developed post-up moves and in the UAAP, I think he’ll dominate. He’s gaining confidence by the game. Marcio (Lassiter) and Jayvee (Casio) were our best players in Serbia. Jayvee, however, hurt his knee and we’re still not sure how bad is the injury. He’s due for another MRI and we’ll find out the extent of the damage. Marcio eventually wants to play in the PBA and right now, he’s under contract with us. He’s adjusted very well to our system. He’s much closer to his teammates now. Marcio is a tough defender and reliable scorer who can play two or three.”
As for Japeth Aguilar, Toroman said he’s still working to get in shape, mentally and physically. “He had one great game in Australia that showed his potential,” said Toroman. “We expect much more from Japeth. Because he didn’t play much in college, he needs more exposure to improve his decision-making on the court. As he gains confidence, we’ll see him improve.”
Every player in the squad has raised his level of play, continued Toroman, singling out Chris Tiu, Mac Baracael, Dylan Ababou, J. R. Cawaling, Mark Barroca and Jason Ballesteros. Center Rabeh Al-Hussaini missed the recent Australian and Serbian tours to recover from surgery to remove bone spurs in his left foot. If Al-Hussaini is ready to play, Toroman will bring him along for the coming US and Canada series.
Toroman said he’s not waiting for Cebu’s 6-10 Junmar Fajardo and UE’s Paul Lee to join Gilas. “We’ve been inviting Fajardo for two years but his school won’t allow him,” he said. “We haven’t progressed in negotiating to recruit him. As for Paul, it’s too late for him to join. His focus is on the UAAP, PBL and later the PBA.”
Toroman said convincing an import to sign up is proving more difficult than expected.
“We were close to bringing in Dwayne Jones but he was taken by the Phoenix Suns,” said Toroman. “It’s too bad because he just sits on the bench in the NBA. We were also interested in Earl Barron but he went to the New York Knicks and he’s doing very well. Brian Butch was picked up by Denver. The big guys are thinking NBA not about playing overseas so it’s been difficult convincing the top talents to consider us.”
Toroman said 6-10 center Jared Homan of Iowa State – the same school that produced Lebanese import Jackson Vroman – is now the top naturalization candidate to play for Gilas.
Toroman said from what he knows, FIBA-Asia has still to decide which city will host the 2011 Olympic qualifiers. Manila has expressed the intention to bid but Iran, Jordan and Lebanon are expected to provide stiff competition.
“We were more competitive in Serbia this year even if we won only once compared to two games last year,” said Toroman. “It was a good experience for us. There was only one game where we were blown out and it was against a team with three Serbian national players, one Slovenia national player, an American import and several national junior players, including the MVP of the under-20 selection. With more size and experience, we could’ve won more games.”
Smart-Gilas national basketball team coach Rajko Toroman said the other day Greg Slaughter is maturing to become a dominant force at the slot and the 6-11 Fil-Am center has improved dramatically since joining the elite squad.
Slaughter, 21, is redshirting at Ateneo this year to be eligible for the UAAP next season but his priority will remain Gilas. He previously saw action for the University of Visayas. His American father William is 6-3 and his Filipina mother Emma Fuentes, 5-7. Born in the US, Slaughter has lived the last few years in his mother’s home province of Cebu.
“Greg went up against seven-foot players in our recent Serbia games and held his own,” said Toroman. “He’s ready for the PBA right now. He’s developed post-up moves and in the UAAP, I think he’ll dominate. He’s gaining confidence by the game. Marcio (Lassiter) and Jayvee (Casio) were our best players in Serbia. Jayvee, however, hurt his knee and we’re still not sure how bad is the injury. He’s due for another MRI and we’ll find out the extent of the damage. Marcio eventually wants to play in the PBA and right now, he’s under contract with us. He’s adjusted very well to our system. He’s much closer to his teammates now. Marcio is a tough defender and reliable scorer who can play two or three.”
As for Japeth Aguilar, Toroman said he’s still working to get in shape, mentally and physically. “He had one great game in Australia that showed his potential,” said Toroman. “We expect much more from Japeth. Because he didn’t play much in college, he needs more exposure to improve his decision-making on the court. As he gains confidence, we’ll see him improve.”
Every player in the squad has raised his level of play, continued Toroman, singling out Chris Tiu, Mac Baracael, Dylan Ababou, J. R. Cawaling, Mark Barroca and Jason Ballesteros. Center Rabeh Al-Hussaini missed the recent Australian and Serbian tours to recover from surgery to remove bone spurs in his left foot. If Al-Hussaini is ready to play, Toroman will bring him along for the coming US and Canada series.
Toroman said he’s not waiting for Cebu’s 6-10 Junmar Fajardo and UE’s Paul Lee to join Gilas. “We’ve been inviting Fajardo for two years but his school won’t allow him,” he said. “We haven’t progressed in negotiating to recruit him. As for Paul, it’s too late for him to join. His focus is on the UAAP, PBL and later the PBA.”
Toroman said convincing an import to sign up is proving more difficult than expected.
“We were close to bringing in Dwayne Jones but he was taken by the Phoenix Suns,” said Toroman. “It’s too bad because he just sits on the bench in the NBA. We were also interested in Earl Barron but he went to the New York Knicks and he’s doing very well. Brian Butch was picked up by Denver. The big guys are thinking NBA not about playing overseas so it’s been difficult convincing the top talents to consider us.”
Toroman said 6-10 center Jared Homan of Iowa State – the same school that produced Lebanese import Jackson Vroman – is now the top naturalization candidate to play for Gilas.
Toroman said from what he knows, FIBA-Asia has still to decide which city will host the 2011 Olympic qualifiers. Manila has expressed the intention to bid but Iran, Jordan and Lebanon are expected to provide stiff competition.
“We were more competitive in Serbia this year even if we won only once compared to two games last year,” said Toroman. “It was a good experience for us. There was only one game where we were blown out and it was against a team with three Serbian national players, one Slovenia national player, an American import and several national junior players, including the MVP of the under-20 selection. With more size and experience, we could’ve won more games.”
No comments:
Post a Comment