Bucket Vault PH

INSPIRED SI THE PREDATOR CJ PEREZ! 🥵

Post ng kanyang asawa:

"POV: NAKAISCORE KA SA COURT, NAKAISCORE PA SA ASAWA" - Sienna Perez

Idol CJ after na lang ng laban sa Iran ah, kailangan ka pa ng Gilas e 😭

📸 Sienna Perez/SBP

A COUPLE OF BIG TAKEAWAYS FROM GILAS’ WIN OVER JORDAN

Sometimes a game tells you something about a team beyond the final score And this Gilas win told us a lot. The Philippines went down by as many as 18 points.

The original plan was use the size, pound Jordan inside, and play through the bigger lineup. But it wasn't working.

So Coach Tim Cone and his staff adjusted. They went smaller. They went quicker. And suddenly, the entire rhythm of the game changed. The floor opened. The pace increased. The defense became more aggressive.

And especially in the latter part of the game, Gilas appeared to loosen the structure of the Triangle and allow the offense to become more free-flowing. Instead of constantly trying to execute a predetermined action, the players were given more opportunities to read the defense and decide:

Attack? Pass? Cut? Create? Just play basketball.

And perhaps nobody benefited from that adjustment more than…

CJ PEREZ.

Because when the game became faster and more instinctive CJ became CJ again. Attack the closeout. Get downhill. Put pressure on the rim. Create something out of nothing. Play with aggression. Play with instinct. That's CJ Perez basketball.

CJ is one of those players who becomes dangerous when you give him enough structure to understand where everybody is but enough freedom to be himself.

And that's what Gilas' adjustment seemed to unlock. Th smaller lineup gave him space. The quicker tempo allowed him to attack before Jordan could completely set its defense. The freer offense allowed CJ to stop overthinking the possession and simply react to what was in front of him.

And once CJ started attacking. Jordan had problems. He was cooking. Getting downhill. Making tough shots. Forcing help defenders to collapse.

And eventually, all of that pressure created perhaps the biggest offensive play of the night. Game tied at 79. CJ attacks. Jordan collapses. And considering how CJ had been playing, you would've completely understood if he decided: “Ako na 'to.” 😂 Especially CJ Perez. The man Gilas fans have called bakaw, ball hog, ball magnet, crocodile and probably 37 other names through the years. 😂

But this time…

CJ PASSED. He saw Kevin Quiambao open. Kick-out. KQ catches. BANG.

Clutch three. 82-79.

And that's what made the play beautiful. Because giving CJ freedom didn't simply mean giving him permission to shoot whenever he wanted. It meant giving him the freedom to make the basketball decision himself. Attack when the lane is there. Shoot when you're open. Pass when the defense commits. And when the biggest decision of the night arrived…

CJ made the right one. Even Coach Tim praised it afterward as a great, unselfish play. That's growth. That's trust. That's basketball.

And it's also why Coach Tim and his staff deserve credit. We've criticized them before when Gilas looked too rigid. When the Triangle seemed forced. When adjustments seemed to come too late. So when they adjust correctly? We should give them their flowers too.

Kudos to Coach Tim and his staff. They recognized that the original plan wasn't working. They changed the lineup. They changed the pace. They allowed the offense to breathe.

And in doing so, THEY UNLEASHED CJ PEREZ.

Maybe that's an important lesson moving forward. The Triangle doesn't necessarily have to disappear. But it also doesn't have to dictate every possession. Give the players structure, but don't take away what makes them special. Because sometimes the system creates the advantage. And sometimes the best adjustment is allowing your players to PLAY.

Then there are KQ and Kai Sotto. Future cornerstones of Gilas? ABSOLUTELY YES.

Kai returned to Gilas and produced 18 points and 14 rebounds, then delivered the game-saving block in the dying seconds. KQ hit arguably the biggest shot of the night. CJ created it. KQ buried it. Kai protected it. Three different players. Three completely different strengths. But together, perhaps they gave us a glimpse of what this program could look like moving forward.

And here's the part that makes the entire night almost poetic.

Before the game even started, Coach Tim wrote something on the Gilas whiteboard:

“GRIND IT – ONE POINT WIN.”

Not blow them out. Not win beautifully. Not prove anything to anybody.

Grind.

Find a way. And win by one if that's what it takes. Then Gilas fell behind by 18. They struggled. They adjusted. CJ was unleashed. KQ hit the clutch three. Kai made the final defensive stand.

And after overtime…

Philippines 82 Jordan 81

A ONE-POINT WIN.

You really couldn't write it any better. Maybe Coach Tim wasn't predicting the final score. Maybe he was reminding his players what Gilas needed to become. A team willing to grind when Plan A fails. A coaching staff willing to adjust. Stars willing to trust one another. CJ willing to make the extra pass. KQ willing to take the biggest shot. Kai willing to protect the basket when everything was on the line.

GRIND IT. ONE POINT WIN.

GRIN IT ONCE MORE VS IRAN

REAL TALK LANG! 🔥

"Play the international boys. Their pace is great. Dont get me wrong magaling din PBA. But the international boys are doing well. JDL is my opinion is international. Let’s go!!! More power boys" - Alex Cabagnot

Wake up call na sana sa PBA to napagiiwanan na yung liga in terms of level of the game, salaries etc. Masyado tayong nagrerely sa old style, nasa modern world na tayo kailangan din mag upgrade.

Makikita sa national team natin KBL boys at Bleague boys ang kumana o bumubuhat sa mga nakalipas na mga laro ng national team.

Tas yung mga nakaline up na PBA players satin is di rin makapag ambag ng ayos like Junemar Fajardo, Chris Newsome except kagabi na maganda ang pinakita ni CJay Perez, Scottie Thompson and Juan Gomez De Liaño.

Anong thoughts nyo sa post ni Cabagnot?

KNOW YOUR ROLE!!!

KUDOS TO AJ EDU AND SCOTTIE THOMPSON

Eto yung mga player na di mo nakikita yung records sa stat sheets kasi efforts at hustle yung pinapakita nila at ambag nila sa koponan. INTANGIBLES!!!

Despite na nagkaroon ng crucial turnover si Iskati, nalimutan na agad yung pag shutdown nya kay Harris sa kabuan ng laro. Kasabay rin neto yung inside presence ni AJ Edu na nakakaintimidate ng mga tira and yung mga box outs nya against Jordan bigs malaking bagay rin yun. Kaya nakabawi ang Gilas after bad 1st quarter.

Isang saludo sainyo Scottie and AJ! 🫡

Congratulations Gilas Pilipinas sa panalo kontra Jordan! Pero isa na lang talaga nakikita kong problema ngayon.....

adidas bakit naman ganon ang fit ng jersey nila??? HAHAHAHAHA si KQ mismo na sponsored niyo iniikot ikot yung sa balikat ng jersey eh dahil sobrang luwag at kapal... maganda pa gawa ng mga local brands kaysa don eh HAHAHAHA

SOTTO x EDU!!!

After 3 years nakita muli nating maglaro ng sabay ang dalawang ito sa ating National team.

May mga times na di sila nagkakasabay dahil ang isa nagpapagaling kanilang me ga injuries pero kagabi pinakita ng dalawang to na sila talaga ang present and future ng Gilas.

Just imagine our Frontline if Quentin Millora-Brown and Mike Phillips is also available on our future games.

Grabeng Frontline yan!

MAPAPASABI NA LANG TALAGA TAYO NG THANK YOU REF! 😭

Sobrang daming maninipis na tawag sa buong laro pero bumawi sa atin nung crucial or dying minutes na ng laro.

Pasensya na Jordan non call eh, if ever siguro pumito ref iba rin magiging timpla ng laro noon.

GET WELL SOON CARL TAMAYO!!

Nanalo man tayo kagabi, nakakalumgkot pa rin dahil may player tayong nainjury, wala pa ang official results kung ano ang tinamo ni Tamayo pero marami na ang nagsasabi na 'sprain' lang ito, Sana nga sprain lang talaga. Sayang din dahil umiinit at nakukuha na niya ang pace ng laro nung tumumba siya. Let Us all PRAY for Carl Tamayo!!

🇵🇭🇵🇭🇵🇭

Salamat talaga Kai Sotto, or else, si Scottie talaga pag pyepyestahan ng mga tao.

TY KUNG SINO KA MAN!

SALAMAT SA MINTIS MONG FREETHROW SHOT SOBRANG LAKING BAGAY NUN 😭😭😭