Every basketball team competing in the 2018 Asian Games has been allotted only 50 minutes per day to hold their daily sessions.
And this has been a huge obstacle for Gilas Pilipinas head coach Yeng Guiao as he tries to integrate Filipino-American Jordan Clarkson into his system.
“Our only problem is the regular practice is arranged by the organizers, nakaka-practice namin siya (Clarkson) 50 minutes lang,” Guiao lamented, as Clarkson only arrived in Jakarta, Indonesia last Thursday.
So when the Filipino community in Jakarta heard about this, they pooled together their resources and found a court for their compatriots.
Saturday, Gilas held practice at the Sekolah Pelita Harapan Kemang Village in South Jakarta. More importantly, they were able to pack an extra hour and 10 minutes into their session in preparation for their big game against China on Tuesday.
And Guiao was incredibly grateful to Vince Chacon and Karl Osia who made this possible.
“Hindi sila nakakalimot sa kapwa nilang Pinoy,” Guiao told the members of the press present.
“We will be in touch with them kung sakali [kailangan pa namin].”
The Filipinos also made sure that Gilas had a post-workout lunch after the day’s practice.
Now, Clarkson and Gilas were able to see first-hand who they are fighting for.
