Despite losing in the finals of the Philippine Basketball Association for the first time in his career, Justin Brownlee is still determined to lead Gilas Pilipinas in its redemption tour in the 32nd Southeast Asian Games.
Brownlee said losing is not an option as he leads the Filipinos in the men’s basketball event of the biennial meet that kicks off on Tuesday at the Elephant 2 Hall of Morodok Techo Indoor Sports Center.
The 35-year-old naturalized player is a perfect fit for the Filipinos.
Aside from being an all-around player that fits the system of Gilas coach Chot Reyes, Brownlee also knows Philippine basketball like the back of his hand after serving as resident import of Barangay Ginebra San Miguel in the PBA.
Now, he has a chance to repay the country by leading it back to glory.
“It’s gold or nothing,” Brownlee said.
“We know how important it is for us to get out there and win the gold for the Philippines and we’ll do whatever it takes to get the job done.”
Filipino-German banger Christian Standhardinger, also relishes the opportunity of sharing the court with Brownlee, who will see action in the SEA Games for the first time since getting naturalized last year.
Under International Basketball Federation rules, Brownlee and Standhardinger are both classified as naturalized players. But it doesn’t apply in the SEA Games as Standhardinger is treated as a local player for having a Philippine passport.
“There are former NBA players and a lot of naturalized players and competing countries have stepped up here,” Standhardinger said. “But we have to take it seriously in our preparations and if we can do that, we have an absolute chance.”
“I think it’s very, very important that we can win that gold back. The situation now is something we can take advantage of. In other tournaments, I’m a naturalized player because of my situation. Having Justin Brownlee here playing as a naturalized player instead of me, that’s a great thing for the Philippines.”