BROWNLEE AIMS TO BE IN BEST SHAPE POSSIBLE FOR GILAS STINT IN OQT

JUSTIN Brownlee is gearing up for the Fiba Olympic Qualifying Tournament with his current stint in the Indonesia Basketball League (IBL).

Brownlee said he is determined to be in the best shape possible for the OQT where Gilas Pilipinas will take on some of the best teams in the world for a spot in the Paris Olympics to be held from July 26 to August 11.

"I think it’s great. I get to stay in playing shape, game shape," said Brownlee in an interview after his recent return to Manila following a break in the Indonesia competition.

"You don’t want to take away too much time especially with the Olympic qualifiers coming. You want to be in the best shape you can possibly get," said Brownlee.

With the PBA in its all-Filipino tournament, Brownlee was given the go-signal by Barangay Ginebra and the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP) to play in Indonesia where he can be in a competitive environment in the IBL.

Pelita Jaya is one of the top teams in the 2024 IBL season with an 8-1 win-loss record. Brownlee has only played in a single game and had 14 points and 11 rebounds during his debut game with Pelita Jaya last RANS Simba Bogor last March 23.

"I definitely think playing in Indonesia helps a lot with that. Also just focusing on getting better and better, try to be in tip-top shape," said Brownlee.

Aside from the IBL, Brownlee had a recent stint in the Basketball Champions League Asia qualifiers first round where Pelita Jaya went undefeated and earned a slot in the next phase.

Brownlee said the Fiba environment in the BCL Asia qualifiers also helped in familiarizing himself again with the format for short international tournaments.

The Fiba OQT will be held in Latvia where Gilas Pilipinas will take a one-day respite before facing the host on July 3 and Georgia on July 4.

"It’s similar to how to qualify," said Brownlee of the BCL Asia qualifiers with the OQT. "Everyday games, maybe one-day break, because you have games back-to-back. It could be (break) maybe less than 24 hours sometimes."

"Being able to get used to that and having the qualifiers coming over, it’s going to help tremendously," said Brownlee.

A spot in the Paris Olympics could be another achievement to the stint of Brownlee with Gilas Pilipinas.

Brownlee became a naturalized Filipino in January 2023, enabling him to be eligible for a slot with Gilas Pilipinas. He started his Gilas stint during the Fiba Basketball World Cup Asian qualifiers final window last February.

Brownlee has already helped Gilas Pilipinas win gold medals in the Southeast Asian Games in Cambodia and Asian Games in Hangzhou, China last year, although he didn’t see action in the World Cup in lieu of NBA player Jordan Clarkson.

2024-04-16T10:15:59Z dg43tfdfdgfd