The Most Thankless Job in Philippine Basketball

A couple of weeks ago, the SBP and PBA revealed how the Gilas program was due for a bit of an overhaul. This, of course, was triggered by Gilas’s dismal showing in the 2014 Incheon Asian Games. A lot of people assumed that this meant coach Chot was automatically out of the equation, but that was quickly refuted by SBP officials, who said that coach Chot will still be involved in the program and may even be renewed as the team’s coach.

The only coach in the past three decades to give us a Jones Cup title, a FIBA Asia silver medal,
a FIBA Asia Cup bronze, and a win in the World Cup has called it quits.
(image from Smart Gilas)

At midday today, however, the coach who steered Philippine basketball back to the world stage took his name out of the running.

#GilasIssues: Part 4 – Rebooting Philippine Basketball

This piece was supposed to be a little different, but recent developments concerning the Gilas Pilipinas basketball program have conspired, rather serendipitously I might add, to steer this final part of the #GilasIssues series to a slightly different direction.

Right now, Gilas Pilipinas, the team that has captured our collective imagination for the past several years is all but a blank slate. Gilas 1.0 finished top four in the 2011 FIBA Asia. Gilas 2.0 qualified for the FIBA World Cup. How about Gilas 3.0?

Gilas gets a reboot for 2015.

We don’t know just yet.

Right now, the SBP and PBA will go through a selection process for all the members of Gilas 3.0, but, let’s face it, this will be a long and winding road mainly because the issues of the team, which have been detailed in previous posts, go beyond faces and personalities.

#GilasIssues: Part 3 – Opening Up Philippine Basketball

I’ve long held the belief that for anybody to improve at his or her craft, he or she, inevitably, must be exposed to other people who are just as good or even better at that particular craft. In a regular professional setting, this can mean going to conferences, training seminars, or apprenticeships on foreign soil or inviting world-class individuals to come over and give talks or facilitate skill-acquisition sessions (because, of course, one cannot be world-class by just staying home, right?). In the sports setting, however, this almost always means competing against not just the best in one’s school, one’s neighborhood, one’s city, or even one’s country, but going a step further and measuring one’s capacities against the best and brightest of the continent, if not the world.

In the context of the Philippines, this action results in two outcomes – our athletes get to learn from the best, and our athletes get to show the world how Filipinos play.

For Philippine hoops to flourish on the world stage, we need to go global.

#GilasIssues: Part 2 – It’s Not The Coach

Off with his head.

I don’t think I’ve ever seen so much backlash result from such an unfortunate confluence of events involving Gilas Pilipinas.

After steering Gilas to a disappointing finish in the 2014 Asian Games, seemingly shaming naturalized player Marcus Douthit in public after losing to Qatar, and engineering an unprecedented own-goal attempt against the Kazakhs, coach Chot Reyes came under fire from all angles.

Many wanted him out of Gilas as soon as possible.

Some considered him no more than a disgrace to Philippine basketball.

Everybody wanted, at the very least, an explanation.

Practically nobody was left in his corner, except those who were actually, literally, with him in Incheon, South Korea.

Coach Chot had a forgettable stint in the 2014 Asian Games.
(image from Jumpball.co.kr)

"It's unfair criticism. Obviously, the result here in Korea wasn't what we had planned. We were hopeful to compete for the gold medal. But again a lot of unexpected things happened, from Andray's eligibility issue, to having Marcus back after pretty much two to three months layoff, and on top of that the injuries, but then again, it's not an excuse. The guys continued to fight, gave everything they had but for this particular tournament, it wasn't enough," said Jimmy Alapag in one interview.

PR: Master Game Face winners recall once-in-a-lifetime experience watching Gilas in Spain

Hailed as the most valuable fans in the 2014 FIBA World Cup, millions of Filipinos from around the globe stormed social networking sites to show their support for Gilas Pilipinas. They also came in throngs to Seville, Spain to watch the national squad live as they competed in the world’s biggest basketball event.

Master, the #1 Men’s Face Care brand that gives an oil and pimple-free look to all Filipino men with its Facial Wash and Face Cleanser ranges, recently concluded the “Master Goes to Spain” Promo.  It was a special, one of a kind promotion where 5 lucky Master Face Care users won a trip of a lifetime to watch Gilas Pilipinas compete in the FIBA World Cup last September 2014.

Among those who personally cheered and closely followed the FIBA journey of Gilas Pilipinas were “Master Game Face Goes to Spain” promo winners Jose Clipper Besin, Michael Cleofe, Jeiel Guarino, Jerome Christopher Hernandez, and Andrew Paul Peñaranda. Fhey enjoyed an 8-day all-expense stay in Seville and watched the national men’s basketball team put their game faces on against Croatia, Greece, Argentina, Puerto Rico, and Senegal.

Five lucky Pinoys were treated to the trip of a lifetime in #Spain2014.

#GilasIssues: Part 1 - The Big Picture

Don’t cry for Gilas Pilipinas.

It’s not dead.

It’s not buried.

It’s not gone.

The team fell short, sure.

No medals from Incheon, sure.

A collective record of 4 wins and 8 losses in its last two tournaments, sure.

Coach Chot calling out Marcus, sure.

Marcus scoring an own goal, sure.

There were certainly a lot of things to be disappointed about.

Pinoy fans were the most raucous in #Incheon2014.
(image from Jumpball.co.kr)