By Leobert Julian A. d la Peña
Dwight Ramos finally arrived in the country and wasted no time as he immediately joined the Gilas Pilipinas training camp held at the Mount Malarayat Golf & Country Club in Lipa, Batangas.
Several days after head coach Chot Reyes and the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP) shared Ramos’ addition to the Gilas pool, the six-foot-four swingman quickly flew from Japan to the Philippines just in time for the preparations in the upcoming 2023 FIBA World Cup Asia first qualifying window.
Upon arriving in Batangas, Ramos joined his former young Gilas cadet core of Juan Gomez de Liaño, William Navarro, Ange Kouame, Jaydee Tungcab, and Tzaddy Rangel.
Ramos, who has been playing as an Asian import for the Toyama Grouses in the Japan B. League, was present during Gilas’ stellar 2021 FIBA campaign.
From the Manama bubble to the last qualifying window where they swept the mighty Korean team, Ramos was one of the most vital players in the roster after averaging 13.8 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 2.2 assists per game.
However, Ramos and the rest of the 2021 holdovers will be playing in a new system under coach Reyes who replaced their former mentor coach Tab Baldwin.
Reyes will be bringing a bunch of his TNT Tropang Giga players into the roster namely: RR Pogoy, Jason Castro, Poy Erram, Kelly Williams, and Troy Rosario who all had stints representing Gilas during the past FIBA qualifiers.
Gilas will face the tough task of going up against Korea, New Zealand, and India in their opening window that is set to kick off this February.
