Mike Phillips will get his much-awaited FIBA debut after being named to Gilas Pilipinas team bound for Window 3 of the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2027 Asian Qualifiers in July.
The former La Salle star was part of the 12-man lineup released by the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas on Thursday — a lineup featuring a couple of returnees, since the team has been dealing with manpower woes.
Calvin Oftana is in sick bay due to injuries, while Kai Sotto and Quentin Millora-Brown are out for this window to pursue career-related matters. With that, Coach Tim Cone has called up Troy Rosario and Justine Baltazar to shore up his frontline.
This marks the two bigs’ return to the national team after a long while. Rosario last played for Gilas during the previous World Cup Qualifiers, while ‘Balti’ returns for the first time since the FIBA Asia Cup 2021 Qualifiers.
