LIKE a good soldier, Gilas Pilipinas alternate Japeth Aguilar is always ready to answer the country’s call.
Mr. Aguilar is being tipped to fill in after Kai Sotto went down with a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) this week, preventing the 7-foot-3 slotman from joining the Nationals’ sorties for six months or so.
“You know, I’m just here,” said three-time FIBA World Cup veteran Mr. Aguilar, named by coach Tim Cone as a backup big man in case of injuries to Gilas regulars Mr. Sotto, June Mar Fajardo and AJ Edu.
“I mean, I feel like there are still other bigs like AJ Edu. Hope he stays healthy. June Mar is still there. We still have a lot of young guys. My role lang here is to guide the young guys.”
Mr. Aguilar’s familiarity with how Mr. Cone, his coach at Ginebra, runs things will come in handy as Gilas embarks on its next mission on the road in the FIBA Asia Cup Qualifiers third window in February against Chinese Taipei and New Zealand.
“Basta ‘yung system namin, yung triangle ni Coach Tim, pinaka-important sa amin na ma-execute namin nang maayos. And also, kung anuman yung matulong ko sa kanila, ‘yun lang ang role ko,” said the 6-foot-9 frontliner.
Mr. Sotto’s absence from the qualifiers prolongs the realization of Mr. Cone’s dream of finally unraveling the exciting combo of Messrs. Sotto and Edu after the latter missed the 2024 campaign due to injury.
“I’ve said it before, until we get Kai and AJ together, the other countries won’t see our best Gilas team,” Mr. Cone said. “Looking forward to that day.”
Gilas stalwarts and the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP) led the well-wishers for the 22-year-old Mr. Sotto, who described this situation as probably “the darkest day of my basketball career.”
“I know he’s having a hard time right now, but we know he’s still young. Always trust in the Lord. Have faith. He has plans for you. Keep your spirit up and you will be back stronger. God bless you, Kai,” Mr. Aguilar said.
“Even though it is always a tough challenge to recover from an ACL injury, we’re confident that Kai will be back stronger and better than ever,” the SBP said. “The SBP family will be here to provide any support that Kai should need.” — Olmin Leyba