Bobby Ray Parks Jr. and Ferdinand “Thirdy” Ravena III have been ruled out of the 12-man roster of the Gilas Pilipinas for the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup, which will begin this Friday.
Gilas head coach Vincent “Chot” Reyes cut the two Japan B.League Asian Quota players, as stated in a tweet by Spin.ph columnist Homer Sayson. However, no reason was provided for their removal.
Curiously, both Parks and Ravena did not suit up in any of the three Gilas Pilipinas friendly matches against Ivory Coast, Montenegro, and Mexico.
Aside from Parks and Ravena, TNT Tropang Giga gunner Calvin Oftana is likely to be the third player to be cut from Gilas Pilipinas’ 16-player pool.
Meanwhile, Sayson said that Shiga Lakes reinforcement Kiefer Ravena has an “excellent chance” of making it to the final Gilas Pilipinas lineup despite his not-so-impressive numbers in the three friendly games.
Reyes is expected to come out with his final lineup on Wednesday.
