With Dubai tilt 3 weeks away, PH side crams for chemistry

JD Cagulangan (No. 12) — UAAP MEDIA PHOTOSCREENING

Charles Tiu believes that he has all the pieces that the Strong-Filipino Group needs to do for the 32nd Dubai International Championship crown, and with less than three weeks before tipoff, the challenge, it seems, has made the team mesh.

“It’s true. We need to find out who plays best with whom,” Tiu told the Inquirer on Wednesday, hours after star college guards JD Cagulangan, Miguel Oczon and Jerom Lastimosa signed on to join a star-studded crew led by three National Basketball Association vets and the naturalization of Ange Kouame. “We can only find out when we see him [in practice].”

Tiu also acknowledged that conditions could be a factor, as most of his players haven’t seen competitive action in a long time, and college stars will be “20 days off.”

“But he is a good athlete, so we can handle it,” Tiu said. “And I know that we have smart players playing under a good coach, so I will be ready.”

Lebron Lopez was also signed with the permission of the Gilas Pilipinas program.

The tournament will begin on January 27 and the Mighty Group will try to become the second team from the Philippines to win the event after Mighty Sports.

A tuneup game with the Philippine Basketball Association’s Konverge squad is also scheduled and Tiu, who is a member of Meralco’s coaching staff, wants to play two more teams before he leaves.

The Philippines is the only non-Middle Eastern country to win there, and with Shabazz Muhammad, Nick Young and Ronaldo Balkman, Tiu knows he has the ingredients to win.

Also on the team is Justine Baltazar who is in the Korean Basketball League, St. Benilde Will Gozum, and former Ateneo players BJ Andrade and Inand Fornillos.

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