By ADRIAN STEWART CO
After a disastrous campaign in the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup, Vincent “Chot” Reyes has decided to step aside as the head coach of the Philippine men’s basketball team.
According to Reyes, Gilas Pilipinas’ 96-75 win over China on Saturday night, September 2, might be his last game as the national team’s mentor as he won’t be coaching the team come the Asian Games later this month.
“I really don’t know if I’m still gonna be here. I might have coached my last game as Gilas Pilipinas coach,” Reyes said.
“It’s my decision and I think it’s time for somebody else to handle this,” he added.
Reyes admitted that what triggered his decision to step aside was their underwhelming campaign in the FIBA World Cup, where Gilas Pilipinas dropped its three-group stage games before splitting their two matches in the classification round.
“I said before to judge us by our performance in this FIBA World Cup, obviously, we did not perform,” Reyes said.
“As I said, I take full accountability. Because of that, I think it is time for me to step aside,” he said.
“I hate using that word, resign. I’m not a quitter. But at the same time, I signed up to do a job and we did not deliver the result. I think it’s time to step aside and allow SBP [Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas] to make a decision for the good of the team and the program,” he added.
This will be the second time that Reyes is leaving the post after also stepping aside in 2018 due to the infamous “Gilas Pilipinas-Australia” basketbrawl. He was replaced by Joseller “Yeng” Guiao and later by Tab Baldwin.
However, Reyes made a return to the Philippine team in 2021 after he steered TNT Tropang Giga to the PBA Philippine Cup championship that year to replace Baldwin, who was reportedly forcibly removed from the post.
Gilas faced disappointment after disappointment in Reyes’ second tour of duty as the country settled for a silver medal finish in the 31st Southeast Asian Games and had its worst finish in the FIBA Asia Cup in ninth place.
There was hope for Reyes’ revival early this year after he regained the gold medal for Gilas Pilipinas in the 32nd Southeast Asian Games, but calls for his resignation came alive after the national team struggled in the World Cup./ASC, WDJ