For Greg Slaughter, he’s simply waiting for his phone to ring and get an invitation before rejoining the Gilas Pilipinas program.
The 7-foot slotman, whom coach Yeng Guiao is eyeing to bolster the Nationals’ campaign in the FIBA World Cup Qualifiers this September, said that nothing has been set in stone yet regarding his Gilas return.
Slaughter was last seen wearing the Philippines’ red, white, and blue back in 2011 in the Southeast Asian Games in Indonesia, where he helped the Filipino dribblers bring home the gold medal by sweeping the tournament.
“Aside from what I’ve been reading online, I haven’t heard anything,” admitted the 30-year-old Cebuano after their successful Governors’ Cup debut at the expense of Columbian Dyip, 96-84, Friday night.
“So I’m just waiting for a call.”
Slaughter also admitted that there are some uncertainties, especially about his eligibility – the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) has a new set of rules governing player eligibility since 2011.
“From what I understood, my eligibility is okay but now, they’re trying to say that it’s not.
“That’s kind of up in the air for me. I thought I was eligible since I played before but I’m hearing otherwise, so hopefully I’m eligible,” shared Slaughter, who was born in Ohio and grew up in Virginia.
Still, all that Slaughter hopes for is to be able to return to the national team, as he has been waiting for years.
“I’ve been waiting for a few years now,” Slaughter confessed.
“I’ve been waiting. It’s unfortunate in the past before with some injuries, not being able to join but I’m healthy now, came off a good conference and I feel good.”
