Birthday boy Dwight Ramos grateful to celebrate his day as a World Cup winner; to miss Asian Games
Dwight Ramos was feeling grateful as he celebrated his 25th birthday helping Gilas Pilipinas end its 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup campaign with a much-needed 95-76 victory over China on Saturday, Sept. 1.

The Gilas Pilipinas guard was serenaded by more than 11,000 crowd at the Smart Araneta Coliseum in a double victory celebration.
Ramos has been a consistent force on the floor behind NBA star Jordan Clarkson in all past four outings that saw the Philippines remained winless.
In their classification match against South Sudan which ended in a painful 87-68 defeat, Ramos even delivered a huge double-double performance of 20 points and 12 rebounds.
With his first World Cup stint ending with a win, it was an unforgettable birthday present for Ramos.
“Finally, one out of five? One out of five? At least we didn’t go without a win so I’m happy about that,” Ramos said.
“Of course, everybody was there. My family was there, the whole stadium was singing happy birthday so I could not ask for more and we won.
“It’s a little extra. Everything. A win, the whole crowd’s here, and my whole family’s in the crowd so I have everything,” he added.
The 6-foot-4 guard was also one of the players who publicly defended Gilas Pilipinas head coach Chot Reyes from the harsh critics even during the previous windows of the quadrennial tournament which is why Ramos immediately felt that the mood was a lot lighter in their final showing in front of the home crowd, helping their case this time.
“I think even before the game, the mood was a lot lighter, people didn’t feel so pressured and I think it showed on the court. Everyone was contributing. It was a good team win and JC carried us and that’s how we should play every time,” said Ramos.
"I think it was just a team effort. Everyone came out confident and played freely. I think that’s what coach wanted from us from the beginning. There’s a lot of ups and downs, a lot of people talking, it kinda got to people, and I’m just glad to see my teammates out there doing well and playing confidently so I was happy to see that," he added.
However, Ramos revealed himself that he won’t be around in the Asian Games along with Clarkson and will likely head back to Japan for his club team Levanga Hokkaido.