Even the holidays won’t stop SMART Gilas Pilipinas from working, as they continued their preparations for the first window of the FIBA World Cup Qualifiers later this November, Monday morning at the Meralco Gym in Pasig City.
After the morning workouts, the Nationals will then head to Tagaytay for a three-day team building session — still a part of their build-up for the qualifiers, which will open this November 24 against Japan in Tokyo.
The attendance for Monday saw an improvement, as national team veteran Japeth Aguilar finally suited up and joined his mates after a week of spending time on the sidelines due to a minor dental procedure.
The Ginebra forward was joined by fellow vets Jayson Castro, Gabe Norwood, June Mar Fajardo, Calvin Abueva, Troy Rosario, Raymond Almazan, and Allein Maliksi. Kiefer Ravena, Mac Belo, Roger Pogoy, Carl Cruz, Matthew Wright, and Kevin Alas were also in uniform.
Terrence Romeo hasn’t been with the team since Friday night. Naturalized center Andray Blatche, meanwhile, has yet to arrive in the country.
