Luis Scola to Gilas: Prepare and believe
Published May 1, 2023 02:00 am
NBA great and Argentine legend Luis Scola shared a couple of reminders for the host team, Gilas Pilipinas, if it wishes to perform well against the tough competition in the 2023 FIBA World Cup.
If there’s someone who certainly knows the formula of winning and performing well in the brightest of stages, that should be Scola who appeared in five editions of the FIBA World Cup and became the second all-time leading scorer in the tournament history. And the former NBA player and now World Cup ambassador reminded the host that despite the daunting task at hand, everything starts with ample preparation and believing that you can get the job done. “Just be prepared. You just got to be prepared. It’s a tough competition, everything happens in a month so you have to be really in shape,” said Scola, who assisted in the draw ceremony at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on Saturday, April 29. The long-time Argentina national team member stressed that playing in the World Cup is a different beast altogether – a more ruthless one in fact – as compared to the regular months-long season of the NBA and any other leagues around the world. “People underestimate that… players get in shape while they are playing. If you have a league that is played in 10 months, yes you can do that because the games will prepare you, now if you are in the World Cup, you have to be prepared from Day 1 and that’s not always easy,” added Scola. “Sometimes there’s a struggle so that will be my biggest advice for players, just pay extra attention to the preparation, getting into the first game, being in maximum condition. Because really, you don't have tomorrow. Your team loses, and that's the end of it, so, that's the first thing,” he added. For a team like Gilas, which is one of the underdogs, believing that it has what it takes to go tooth-and-nail against some of the world’s best could go a long way according to Scola. “For the Philippines team in particular, you just got to go for it. You know, teams that don't have such a big history, like other powerhouses, just gotta believe in it. If you don't believe in it, you're not gonna do it,” Scola said. “You need to believe it, you need to really think that you can do it, you can beat those games, you can pass the round, you can win the world final game whatever that is you just really need to believe, anybody can win today if you are prepared enough and if you are believing enough,” he added.
*Luis Scola poses with the Naismith trophy during the FIBA World Cup draw red carpet. (Arnold Qiuzol)
*If there’s someone who certainly knows the formula of winning and performing well in the brightest of stages, that should be Scola who appeared in five editions of the FIBA World Cup and became the second all-time leading scorer in the tournament history. And the former NBA player and now World Cup ambassador reminded the host that despite the daunting task at hand, everything starts with ample preparation and believing that you can get the job done. “Just be prepared. You just got to be prepared. It’s a tough competition, everything happens in a month so you have to be really in shape,” said Scola, who assisted in the draw ceremony at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on Saturday, April 29. The long-time Argentina national team member stressed that playing in the World Cup is a different beast altogether – a more ruthless one in fact – as compared to the regular months-long season of the NBA and any other leagues around the world. “People underestimate that… players get in shape while they are playing. If you have a league that is played in 10 months, yes you can do that because the games will prepare you, now if you are in the World Cup, you have to be prepared from Day 1 and that’s not always easy,” added Scola. “Sometimes there’s a struggle so that will be my biggest advice for players, just pay extra attention to the preparation, getting into the first game, being in maximum condition. Because really, you don't have tomorrow. Your team loses, and that's the end of it, so, that's the first thing,” he added. For a team like Gilas, which is one of the underdogs, believing that it has what it takes to go tooth-and-nail against some of the world’s best could go a long way according to Scola. “For the Philippines team in particular, you just got to go for it. You know, teams that don't have such a big history, like other powerhouses, just gotta believe in it. If you don't believe in it, you're not gonna do it,” Scola said. “You need to believe it, you need to really think that you can do it, you can beat those games, you can pass the round, you can win the world final game whatever that is you just really need to believe, anybody can win today if you are prepared enough and if you are believing enough,” he added.