The Smart-Gilas national team will be competitive even without Japeth Aguilar in its roster, Serbian coach Rajko Toroman said on Friday after a top official of the Philippine Basketball Association appeared determined to prevent the prized recruit from playing in the coming PBA tournament.

“We still don’t know if Japeth can play, we’re starting with lots of problems,” Toroman conceded. “But we’ll form a competitive team. Even without Aguilar, we want to be competitive in the PBA. We are working on it and we’ll continue working on it.”

With two weeks left before the season-opening conference, Aguilar’s fate remains up in the air.

A proposal submitted by incoming PBA chairman and Burger King official Lito Alvarez is pending in the PBA board to bar Aguilar from suiting up for Smart-Gilas in the All-Filipino Conference.

The 6-foot-10 former Western Kentucky University player was picked No. 1 overall by Burger King, but refused to sign with the team, opting to play for Smart-Gilas.

Peeved by Aguilar’s change of mind, Alvarez wants Aguilar banned from ever playing in the PBA.

The PBA board has yet to act on Alvarez’s proposal.

Smart-Gilas is using its PBA stint to prepare for next year’s Asian Games in Guangzhou, China, as well as the FIBA-Asia Championship in 2011, the qualifying event for the 2012 London Olympics.

Upon his return from a short vacation in the United States, Aguilar joined Smart-Gilas and played for the team when it beat the Singapore Slingers, 70-67, last Wednesday.

Alvarez said Burger King had laid down certain conditions so Aguilar can play.

First, for him to play for Smart Gilas, he must sign up with Burger King.

He can play with Gilas against any PBA team but must play for Burger King against Smart Gilas and other PBA teams, thus practically making him a member of two teams in the PBA.

Aguilar’s camp turned down the conditions.

Alaska’s Joaqui Trillo, last season’s PBA chairman, said preventing Aguilar from playing for Smart-Gilas in the PBA is an option.

“It was only discussed, but there’s no decision. It’s not final yet,” Trillo said.

Trillo said there is also a possibility that the board would allow Aguilar to play depending on the talks between BK and the SBP.

The SBP is headed by Smart and PLDT chairman Manny V. Pangilinan, who is also the owner of Philippine Cup defending champion Talk ’N Text and part owner of Burger King.