Houston Rockets shooting guard and Filipino-American player Jalen Green reignited the hope of him playing for the Gilas Pilipinas, the men’s national basketball team of the Philippines.
In an interview with Venencio Valencia of Sports on Air, Green was asked about his openness to play for the Filipino national team, seeing that he has previously shown interest in playing for Gilas.
“Maybe,” Green said. “I gotta—tyrin’ to make team USA first.”
Jalen Green has been making efforts to make an impact on the US national basketball team lately. In 2023, he made it to the USA Basketball Men’s Select Team, a group that trains with the senior national team. This is in preparation for them to eventually take part in major events such as the FIBA World Cup.
While his future Gilas stint may take some time to come to reality, his Filipino fans may not have to wait any longer when it comes to a potential visit to the Philippines.
“Hopefully soon,” Green said when asked about the possibility of a visit to the Philippines. “[I’ve] been there about three times now, so hopefully we’ll get there soon.”
In 2018 and 2019, Jalen Green visited the Philippines and became part of the Fil-Am National Select team and played in the National Basketball Training Center. He came back to the Philippines in 2022 for a tour hosted by a major sports brand. He also participated in a basketball clinic in Ilocos, which is north of the Philippines.
Jalen Green has long expressed his interest in representing the Philippines in basketball, but his previous participation in FIBA-sanctioned youth tournaments puts his eligibility into question, to which he previously remarked: “only time will tell.”
Jalen Green on Rockets Win Over Clippers: “We Could Have Been Better at Defense”
Jalen Green led the Houston Rockets in their win against the LA Clippers, with a final score of 117-106. Despite winning, and carrying his team throughout, Green believes they could still work on one aspect of their play.
“I just like the freedom we play with and how aggressive we play,” Green said in a post-game interview, courtesy of Sports on Air. “I think we could have been a lot better with defense but overall we got turnovers and three-points, we had a good day.”
Jalen Green made 31 points for the Rockets, four rebounds, and one assist. Overall, the Rockets outplayed the Clippers on defense, with them making 38 defensive rebounds over the Clippers’ 26, but the Clippers did more steals at 11, versus the Rockets with four.
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