Gilas Pilipinas are now set to enter a war that is the 2017 William Jones Cup in Taiwan this weekend, and Canada will serve as the Filipinos’ welcoming committee in the nine-day tourney opening on Saturday.
With that, Gilas’ sharpshooter Matthew Wright, who is born in Toronto, Ontario, is wary of his fellow Canadians.
“They are a good team. Just on paper, they should be the best team in the tournament,” opined the Phoenix Fuel Masters star rookie, after Chooks-to-Go’s sendoff for the Nationals, Wednesday at Crowne Plaza in Ortigas. “They are good. They have a lot of size and athletic.
“Their length might cause a little bump for us, but we are gonna be playing just as athletic and big as Canada so this is a perfect barometer for us to see where we are.”
But despite the concerns, the 26-year-old St. Bonaventure alumnus is nothing but eager to face Canada, who last won the Jones Cup title way back in 1996 and last hoisted a trophy — a second-place award — back in 2004.
“I’m excited to play them first. We will be thrown out to the fire and see how well can we play against a big and legit size roster,” said the 2016 ABL ASEAN Heritage MVP.
“We will try to shock them early and the momentum going.”
And as for the entire cagefest, Wright is optimistic that Gilas has what it takes to reign supreme in the annual Taiwan-based tournament.
“Realistically, there’s a good chance we will win the championship. That’s the only thing,” he said. “You don’t play to come in second or third place or for exercise — you come to win championships.
“We’re just trying to show up and gain experience, we’re also trying to win.”
