Fil-Am Lakers guard Jordan Clarkson unlikely to play for Gilas soon, says national coach

Filipino-American Lakers guard Jordan Clarkson has expressed his desire to play for Gilas Pilipinas in several interviews abroad.

 

Despite his Filipino heritage, he is not eligible to play for the country due to a FIBA rule requiring players to acquire citizenship before they turn 16 years old. Clarkson is planning to petition for an exemption, but a surer way is to get naturalized.

 

For national team coach Tab Baldwin, however, he does not see the 22-year-old Clarkson wearing the Gilas Pilipinas uniform in the immediate future.

 

"I think the difficult thing for Jordan is that traditionally the Philippines need a big man in the naturalized role," said the coach.

 

Currently, Gilas Pilipinas has two naturalized players: Marcus Douthit and Andray Blatche, who play the center and power forward positions. Both players stand at 6-foot-11, augmenting the size disadvantage of Filipino players.

 

Meanwhile, the country has an abundance of talent in the guard position, but Baldwin said Clarkson would be a "phenomenal candidate" if there is an urgent need for another ball handler.

 

"It's not that likely that we'll need a guard all of a sudden instead of a big man," he said. "If there ever came a time that we need a guard, it's great to know that Jordan is available."

 

"In the short term, I don't see that likelihood, but it's nice to know that's there and he has that feeling for the country and that desire to represent us," he added.

 

Former national coach and Pampanga representative Yeng Guiao, however, earlier cautioned that the Congress may not be open to naturalizing more players because the team already has two foreign-borns in the lineup. —JST, GMA News