Jazz’s Jordan Clarkson fires hyped 2-word reaction to Philippines’ upset win vs. Latvia

Even though he wasn’t on the court when the Philippines upset Latvia, Jordan Clarkson could still feel their happiness.

In an attempt to qualify for the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, Jordan Clarkson was unable to suit up for the Philippines, who decided to stick with their most recent squad for continuity’s sake. The guard for the Utah Jazz was unable to play a regular role for the team known as Gilas Pilipinas due to the NBA schedule. Still, Gilas Pilipinas managed to pull off a surprising upset win over Latvia, 89-80, to start their campaign in the Olympic Qualifying Tournament (OQT), even without their greatest player, Clarkson.

The Jazz guard was ecstatic with the Philippines’ once-in-a-lifetime shock victory over the sixth-ranked basketball nation in the world. His mother is Filipina, making him a recognized Filipino based on jus sanguinis.

Kristaps Porzingis, who is recuperating from surgery during the winter, and Arturs Zagars, a 24-year-old guard who made waves in the Philippines during the 2023 FIBA World Cup, might not have been on Team Latvia. Nonetheless, the active squad of the sixth-ranked team in the FIBA rankings featured an abundance of offensive talent. It would be extremely difficult for Gilas Pilipinas to keep the game close, much less to win against a European team for the first time in 64 years, given that the competition was also hosted in their capital city of Riga.

The Orlando Magic center Goga Bitadze and the San Antonio Spurs center Sandro Mamukelashvili will lead Georgia, a squad the Philippines must now avoid losing by 19 points or more to progress to the top four of the OQT.

Over the past year or two, Gilas Pilipinas has advanced significantly; it’s not hard to picture how much better the team would be if Jordan Clarkson was qualified to play as a local according to FIBA regulations. However, if the Philippines can carry on with their offensive and defensive play as they did on Wednesday afternoon, a Cinderella tale could be ready to unfold when they compete in the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris.

Philippines, without the Jazz guard, makes history

Jordan Clarkson is acknowledged as a Filipino by the Philippine constitution, as was previously mentioned. Annette Davis, his mother, is an American-Filipina. Clarkson’s grandmother, Davis’ mother, was originally from Pampanga, Philippines. But according to FIBA regulations, a player had to have obtained their local passport prior to turning 16 in order to be considered a local.

This regulation was put in place by FIBA to stop teams from abusing their own legal frameworks to hire several players from other countries in an attempt to make that country a basketball powerhouse. But the Philippines has frequently lost out on the Jazz guard’s services because of this rule.

Jordan Clarkson was able to join Gilas Pilipinas, but as a naturalized player, most recently during the 2023 FIBA World Cup. For those who are unaware, a nation can only have one naturalized player represent them in competitions sanctioned by FIBA. In the Philippines’ World Cup final matchup last year, Clarkson went absolutely crazy, hitting 24 points in the third quarter to help the Gilas to their lone victory of the tournament.

Since then, the Philippine squad has prospered even in Clarkson’s absence. In the most recent Asian Games, Gilas Pilipinas won gold. In the 2025 FIBA Asia Cup qualifiers, which took place in February 2024, they destroyed Chinese Taipei and Hong Kong.

Without Clarkson, Gilas Pilipinas’ success will primarily depend on how effectively homegrown players like Dwight Ramos and Kai Sotto continue to develop and how excellently naturalized forward Justin Brownlee plays all over the field. With a performance that would have made Jordan Clarkson proud, Brownlee led the Philippines to victory over Latvia, scoring 26 points, grabbing nine rebounds, and dishing out nine assists.

There would likely be loud calls from Filipinos for FIBA to permit the Jazz guard to play as a local in Paris if the Philippines, by some miracle, win the OQT in Riga.