AFTER a series of delays, player shakeups, and hurdling restrictions, Gilas Pilipinas finally completed its roster — less than a week before the team defends its men’s basketball gold medal at the 33rd Southeast Asian Games in Thailand.

It all now boils down to familiarity and championship poise of the reigning champions.

Former PBA player Justin Chua and former NCAA MVP Allen Liwag of the De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde Blazers are the last pieces to the final 12-man roster of Gilas that will banner the Philippine basketball team yet again in the biennial meet.

It was a smooth-sailing start for the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP) and Gilas Pilipinas with the initial lineup of the team comprising naturalized player Justine Brownlee, returning national team standouts — Matthew Wright, Thirdy Ravena, Ray Parks, Jamie Malonzo, Dave Ildefonso, former US NCAA star Remy Martin, and college standouts Veejay Pre, Mike Phillips, and Kymani Ladi.

But it all went to drain after a number of continued delays and a rule change in the eligibility ruling for athletes imposed by the Thailand Southeast Games Organizing Committee.

First, Brownlee was axed from the team after the committee barred naturalized players from playing in the biennial meet. Phillips and TNT’s Brandon Ganuelas Rosser have both been “red-flagged” from competing, even though they’ve played in previous SEA Games.

Moreover, per multiple reports, Remy Martin was yellow-flagged by the organizers. The uncertainty also led the Fil-Am guard not to play for the national team. Martin’s camp told the group on Saturday morning that the former Kansas Jayhawks star is no longer planning to join the Gilas team in Thailand.

Ildefonso and Jason Brickman were also cut from the team as they are still playing in the MPBL playoffs, carrying Abra Solid North Weavers, who are now in the Northern Division finals.

From the initial lineup, only Wright, Ravena, Ray Parks, Malonzo, and Veejay Pre were the only ones retained.

But just right in the nick of time, SBP, together with its partner leagues like the PBA, UAAP, and NCAA, was able to pull off a miracle and fill the slots that needed to be filled. Back for national team duties are PBA star Robert Bolick, former Batang Gilas guard Dalph Panopio, Abu Tratter, Von Pessumal, and Justin Chua. They will be joined by collegiate aces Cedrick Manzano from Adamson University and Allen Liwag of CSB Blazers.

For the team, the battle for gold already began months before the SEA Games started. And so far, despite all the setbacks, they pushed through and are now ready to take on the real challenge. The Coach Norman Black-headed squad will look  to extend its dominance in the regional meet after regaining the gold medal in the 2023 SEA Games held in Cambodia. The national team will first see action on Sunday, December 14, against Malaysia at 12:30 p.m.