Former PBA Commissioner Noli Eala has blamed the lack of preparation and planning for Gilas Pilipinas’ disastrous 44-point loss to China in the 2026 Asian Games.
Eala, who described the result as a “national embarrassment” in a social media post, said his statement was driven by frustration over the Philippines’ 105-61 defeat, which ended Gilas’ bid to defend its men’s basketball gold.
“Yung aking naipost na ’yon ay dala ng frustration, sapagkat hindi naman talaga ibig sabihin hindi natin kayang tanggapin ang pagkatalo. Pero yung pagkatalo pong ’yun na natalo tayo ng 44 na puntos,” Eala said.
He questioned the team’s preparation and roster selection, noting that the Philippines had three years to prepare for the Asian Games after ending a 61-year gold-medal drought in 2023.
“Talaga pong hindi pinaghandaan ang depensa ng ating korona na atin pong pinakahintay ng 61 years noong tayo ay nanalo noong 2023,” he said.
Eala also questioned why the Philippines did not field some of its available naturalized players, including Bennie Boatwright III, particularly with Justin Brownlee unavailable due to injury.
Eala also pointed to several players who were unavailable or not included in the Asian Games roster, including Scotty Thompson and CJ Perez, who he said had performed well in the World Cup qualifiers.
Kevin Quiambao was also unavailable because his Korean club did not release him, while Dwight Ramos, AJ Edu and Carl Tamayo are also playing overseas.
Eala stressed that his criticism was not directed at the players, saying they were put in a difficult position against China.
“Gusto ko lang linawin na hindi ho ako galit sa player sapagkat ang mga player ay maglalaro lang naman ’yan. Kawawa naman ho sila, sila po ay parang ipinalamon sa mga leon,” Eala said.
“Parang walang kalaban-laban. Ilalaban yung team na ’yan, wala namang height, walang chemistry, and expect that they will perform well,” he added.
The Philippines needed to lose by no more than 37 points to keep its quarterfinal hopes alive through point differential. Instead, China won by 44 points, 105-61, eliminating Gilas from contention.
“Last 37 tayo. Kailangan hindi tayo matalo ng 37 puntos, e natalo tayo ng 44,” Eala said.
“20 minutes lang, ibig sabihin noon, kada minuto lumalamang ang China. Last minute na tumitira pa ng tres. Alam nila yung gusto nilang gawin, gusto nilang i-eliminate ang Pilipinas,” he said.
For Eala, the loss exposed what he described as an “endemic problem” in Philippine basketball—the lack of coordination between local tournaments and the requirements of international competition.
“Again, the frustration is the lack of preparation, lack of planning, at ito pong endemic problem ng Philippine basketball,” he said.
Eala suggested reducing the number of PBA games during major international competitions to give the national team more time to prepare.
“Ako, ang aking suggestion, pag mga Asian Games, eh bawasan po ang games ng PBA. Okay na hong dalawang conference para talagang kalahating taon pinaghahandaan po yung international requirements natin, kung gusto po nating ipadala yung magagaling na player,” he said.
Gilas finished the Asian Games group stage with a 1-2 record and was eliminated after failing to become one of the two best third-placed teams. The Philippines is assured of a ninth-place finish, its worst result in Asian Games men’s basketball.
Eala said the disappointing campaign was particularly difficult to accept given that the Asian Games had been in preparation for three years.
“Three years naman ’yang pinaghahandaan. Bakit ’yun ang planning?” he said.
