MANILA, Philippines -- Ange Kouame and Justin Brownlee were among the players present in the Philippine national team's practice earlier this week at the Meralco Gym.

Gilas Pilipinas held the first of its weekly practices on Monday in preparation for the next window of the FIBA World Cup Asian Qualifiers in November.

The training session was held behind closed doors, but Gilas coach Chot Reyes shared a brief snippet of the practice on his Instagram stories. There, Kouame and Brownlee were seen stretching alongside other national team pool members.

Watch more News on iWantTFC

• READ: SBP clarifies Kouame still part of Gilas' plans
• SBP seeks lawmakers' assistance in naturalizing players

Also in attendance were PBA stars Scottie Thompson, Japeth Aguilar, and Jamie Malonzo of Ginebra; Chris Newsome of Meralco; Roger Pogoy and Calvin Oftana of TNT; CJ Perez of San Miguel Beer; and Arvin Tolentino of NorthPort.

William Navarro, who is in the center of a recent controversy after he was barred from playing in the Korean Basketball League, also attended the practice along with Francis Lopez.

Kouame was naturalized in 2021 and has since represented the Philippines in a handful of FIBA events, including the FIBA Asia Cup Qualifiers and the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament last year. However, he missed the June window of the World Cup qualifiers and the FIBA Asia Cup due to a knee injury.

Brownlee has long been a candidate for naturalization, with the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP) recently seeking assistance from the Senate to fast-track the process.

The Philippines will play Saudi Arabia and Jordan on the road in the November window.

Related video:

Watch more News on iWantTFC