Friends of mine on social media would attest that I am one in supporting the inclusion of Philippine Basketball Association rookie CJ Perez in the Gilas Pilipinas roster competing at the 2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup in China beginning next month.

The Raptors knew they were taking a big risk when they pulled the trigger on the trade for Kawhi Leonard a week short of a year ago. For one thing, he was set to become a one-season rental; free agency in 2019 beckoned, and his camp made no secret of his preference to play in native California. For another, they needed to give up their identity in the process; the Spurs wanted another superstar, and specifically DeMar DeRozan, who, as their ninth overall pick in the 2009 draft, relished being the face of a franchise otherwise lacking in pull. Giving him up meant redefining the unique culture they had built and fortified; yes, they ran their affairs professionally, but they were a family first and foremost, and they took care of their own.

WHAT was a rough campaign at the FIBA Basketball Under-19 World Cup in Greece for Gilas Pilipinas Youth came to an end on Sunday with the team finishing in 14^th place in the 16-team field.

LYON, FRANCE -- The United States won a record-extending fourth women’s World Cup with a 2-0 victory over the Netherlands on Sunday as second-half goals from Megan Rapinoe and Rose Lavelle confirmed their status as the leading power in the women’s game.

AFTER six tries, Mendiola FC 1991 finally barged into the win column of the ongoing Philippines Football League season, beating Philippine Air Force FC, 3-1, in their battle of winless teams on Sunday at the Biñan Football Stadium in Laguna.

RIO DE JANEIRO -- Brazil’s Gabriel Jesus made one goal, scored another and was sent off in the second half as they beat Peru 3-1 on Sunday to win the Copa America for the ninth time in a pulsating contest at the Maracana stadium.

SEASON 95 of the National Collegiate Athletic Association takes further flight today with six more seniors basketball teams set to make their debut in the scheduled triple-header at the FilOil Flying V Arena in San Juan City.

Last June 13 I reported that Wesley’s former coach GM Vladimir Tukmakov has written a book where he extensively discusses the work he did with Wesley So. I received a lot of questions and request for information from BW readers and this is a good time to respond to them.

The Lakers were decidedly angry in the aftermath of the stunning news that broke the Internet over the weekend. It wasn’t just that Kawhi Leonard, fresh off a sterling playoff stint that culminated in a championship and a Finals Most Valuable Player award, spurned their advances. It was that he deigned to align himself with the little-brother Clippers and, along the way, toyed with them like puppets on a string. He made them think -- only too wrongly, as things turned out -- that, in fulfillment of his wish to go home to native California, they were frontrunners in the battle for his services, with the prospect of headlining an unparalleled Big Three too enticing to pass up.

THE TNT KaTropa assured themselves a top-two finish in the elimination round of the Philippine Basketball Association Commissioner’s Cup and the twice-to-beat advantage that goes with it in the next round following their 115-97 victory over the Blackwater Elite on Sunday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

THE LYCEUM of the Philippines University Pirates began their National Collegiate Athletic Association Season 95 campaign on a winning note, defeating the Colegio de San Juan de Letran Knights, 84-80, on opening day on Sunday at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.

THE WINNING streak of Kaya FC-Iloilo at the Philippines Football League was stopped at five after it was forced to a 0-0 draw by Green Archers United FC on Saturday at the Philippine Football Federation National Training Center in Carmona, Cavite.