

Gilas Pilipinas arrives in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia ahead of the Fiba Asia Cup. -SBP PHOTO
Calvin Oftana was part of Gilas Pilipinas’ contingent that left for Saudi Arabia on Wednesday in a strong indication that he will be part of the roster for next week’s Fiba Asia Cup.
Photos posted by the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas on social media showed Oftana enjoying his time with fellow teammates while waiting for their flight at Terminal 1 of Ninoy Aquino International Airport.
Noticeably absent from the trip were Troy Rosario and RJ Abarrientos, whom coach Tim Cone included in the 16-man pool.
Justin Brownlee, June Mar Fajardo, Scottie Thompson, CJ Perez, Dwight Ramos, Chris Newsome, AJ Edu, Japeth Aguillar, Kevin Quiambao, Carl Tamayo and Jamie Malonzo were among the players also seen in the photos, a likely indication that Cone already has his Final 12 in place.
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Gilas Pilipinas’ Calvin Oftana during a tune-up game against Macau Black Bears. Marlo Cueto/INQUIRER.net
Cone said Oftana had a “50-50 chance” to play in the continental tournament after dealing with an ankle injury playing for TNT during the PBA Philippine Cup playoffs.
Oftana didn’t play in Gilas’ 103-98 comeback victory over the Macau Black Bears. Also absent was Fajardo, who is dealing with calf issue.
But Cone expects Fajardo to finally take part in Gilas practices upon settling down in Jeddah where the Asia Cup will take place.
Gilas has a scheduled exhibition with Jordan on Aug. 2, three days before opening the Asia Cup campaign against Chinese-Taipei.