It has been eight long years since Greg Slaughter last played in the Southeast Asian Games.
Still, the seven-foot slotman from Cebu remembers that experience like it was yesterday.
Slaughter was the starting center of Norman Black’s Sinag Pilipinas team that flew to Jakarta, Indonesia in 2011 for the regional biennial meet. And as expected, that unit ran roughshod over the competition on its way to the gold.
“It’s awesome. My first time in the SEA Games seems like it was just yesterday, in 2011,” he recalled.
Eight years later, Slaughter sees himself back in the SEA Games. He is among the Barangay Ginebra core that leads Gilas Pilipinas’ 15-man pool for the multi-sport showpiece, which runs from November 30-December 11.
The six-year pro out of Ateneo de Manila is honored to be given another shot at playing for the national team. Slaughter last played back in the fifth window of the FIBA World Cup Asian Qualifiers last year that took place here in Manila.
“[I’m] Excited. Every time you get the call to the national team, it’s the highest honor. It’s the most fun thing you can do to represent your whole country — not playing for a team, but playing for the country,” Slaughter said.
The call-up has motivated Slaughter to help the national team further, not just with his size but with his agility. He has been working on his speed and showing it in the on-going 2019 PBA Governors’ Cup.
“Size is always something we need. So what motivates me is to get in much way better shape. As all the coaches say, you know, we need quicker bigs,” said the 31-year-old, who has shed several pounds as a result of his extra workouts.
The Philippines is gunning for its 18th gold medal in the SEA Games, and the chance to achieve that here at home excites Slaughter. But he was quick to warn that it will not be a walk in the park given how the other ASEAN teams have grown.
“Some of the teams have gotten better since eight years ago. So I’m expecting a lot of tougher competition,” Slaughter said. “I know coach Rajko [Toroman] is coaching Indonesia, [while] some teams have naturalized players.
“It’s a tournament we can’t take lightly. It’s something we have to prepare for.”
