BACK UP THE BACKUP OF THE BACKUP

Justin Brownlee has been Gilas Pilipinas' go-to guy for some time now. And while I like the idea of Kai Sotto returning for Gilas, I can't help but feel let down by the Gilas administrators over what is happening with our token naturalized slot.

Now, I'm not that pissed at the coaching staff for banking on Brownlee because, even at 38, he can still go. However, I saw how Jojo Lastimosa worked his phone to look for possible replacements when Bol Manute Bol suffered an injury that ended his Commissioner's Cup campaign.

In the PBA, teams hold scrimmages to see whether a player fits their system or to test two or more imports and determine who will make the cut. When an import gets injured, he is usually placed on the injury reserve list or released altogether. But sometimes, we see a former import lingering on the bench, similar to what we’re seeing with Rondae Hollis-Jefferson and TNT.

Tim Cone and the rest of the staff are PBA lifers, so why can't we have a backup plan or backup plans just in case the main import gets hurt?

When Chot Reyes coached Gilas, he had Marcus Douthit on standby just in case Andray Blatche was unavailable. It was the same case with Brownlee when Jordan Clarkson was unavailable. And before Gilas settled on Douthit, Rajko Toroman had a ton of prospects who had brief stints with the then-Smart Gilas, including naturalized Bahraini player CJ Giles and 2014 NBA Draft ceremonial pick Isaiah Austin. Over the years, we have had imports who would readily accept the challenge just so the squad would have a fighting chance against other countries.

Yes, Angelo Kouame is the other naturalized player, but he was already unavailable even before Brownlee got injured.

And yes, we also have Bennie Boatwright, who is currently in naturalization purgatory because, understandably, the Senate has other things to do, no thanks to the events that transpired after April 2026.

But maybe the team could have a backup for the backup of the backup?

And I'm not even thinking about a complicated situation like auditioning a former NBA player here. If we have a prime version of a player similar to Christian Standhardinger, a player who has seen action for Gilas in the naturalized slot, then at least we have an insurance policy.

And if you think about it, Boatwright is actually auditioning as Brownlee's replacement, which means we need other options for Bennie. Can they just use the backup imports in a resident import-like capacity? I mean, the dude can get additional work if he stays close to the country, just like what Brownlee did when he was playing for Indonesia.

But the more viable option for the naturalized team would be to have one of them concentrate on Gilas while the other does his thing with whatever tournament Strong Group Athletics or Zamboanga Valientes are participating in.

This isn't like the time when Chris Tiu snubbed the PBA Draft for several years because he wanted to concentrate on Gilas. Right off the bat, we have the Jones Cup, Dubai International Basketball Tournament, and the EASL, which requires a team to have multiple imports. And then we also have the Asian Games and the SEA Games.

There are also other professional leagues in our part of Asia, including the PBA, where they can simply pass the time while waiting for a possible call-up.

I am a fan of Brownlee. I believe that he's not only one of the best imports to play in the PBA, but he is arguably the best naturalized player to don the national team's colors. But it's not like in the PBA, where an import can still dominate even in his late 30s.

We can see what the Gilas' future may look like by watching the ongoing PBA Governors' Cup. Brownlee has yet to play for Barangay Ginebra, and they are currently at the bottom of their group. Riley Grigsby is his replacement, but he isn't on Brownlee's level.

And if you have read my blog, you'll know that I always took the first qualifying window lightly because I saw the real test coming against Iran, Jordan, and Syria. In the first window, it was a given that we'd make the next round even if we lost all our games to Australia and New Zealand because of Guam. However, Iran was the continent's leader prior to the arrival of the Oceania teams, while Jordan has been our contra pelo for some time now.

Without Brownlee, our win probability just decreased. And whenever the national team loses, the PBA suffers. At the moment, we expect the PBA to return to the second-tier venues around Manila because of the UAAP, and to some extent, the NCAA. Aside from the venues, ratings and attendance also take a hit.

So, with a team predominantly made up of PBA players and the Asian Games just around the corner, these first few games will be all-important.

With all the local options scattered across the local and international scene, rebuilding the core isn't a big deal. That said, given Brownlee's current health situation and the fact that Boatwright is stuck at the moment, they may need to start looking at prospective options as early as now.