The 15 men selected for the upcoming third window of the 2019 FIBA World Cup Asian Qualifiers departed for Taiwan on Monday morning.
There are the big stars like Gabe Norwood, June Mar Fajardo, Terrence Romeo, Calvin Abueva, Japeth Aguilar, and Andray Blatche. Joining them are Troy Rosario, Allein Maliksi, Carl Cruz, Mac Belo, Jio Jalalon, Baser Amer, Roger Pogoy, and Matthew Wright.
Then there’s Gilas Cadet Troy Rike.
“Pure joy!
“This has been a dream of mine for as long as I can remember. So when I heard the news I called my mom right away, I was so happy,” Rike told Tiebreaker Times.
Rike – who had just arrived in the country last month – will not have the same role as Gilas Cadet Abu Tratter, who was part of the final line-up against Australia during the second window. With the papers of the 22-year-old Filipino-American still being processed, Rike is tasked to help out in the daily practices of the squad leading up to their game on the 30th.
With this opportunity, the product of Wake Forest University is looking forward to absorbing all the knowledge he can get from the coaches and the team’s veterans.
“I’m proud to do anything I can to help Gilas no matter how big or how small.
“I sat next to Gabe on the plane and I feel like I already learned a lot about the Gilas program just from that. But there’s a lot of talented bigs and wings here so hopefully I can learn from them as well,” he shared.
Rike’s best years are still ahead of him. And he is hoping that one day, he can be the one fighting for his motherland in the international stage.
“I hope one day that dream will become a reality,” he confessed.
“Just being a part of the 15 man pool makes me feel like I’m close so that gives me even more motivation to keep working until I can suit up officially for Gilas one day.”
