CHOT SEES CONTINUITY OF GILAS PROGRAM UNDER CONE

MANILA, Philippines: Chot Reyes has been calling the shots as full time head coach of TNT, but there's no doubt that he's still very much involved, even in a non-official capacity with Gilas under coach Tim Cone.

You see, Cone used to serve as one of Reyes' key deputies during Gilas' gold medal redemption in last year's Southeast Asian Games in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, followed by the national squad's FIBA World Cup stint in Manila months later.

Both grizzled veteran coaches have shared a lot of ups and downs, dating back to their younger days in Alaska when Reyes used to serve as one of Cone's assistants during the early 1990s.

Reyes said since stepping down from Gilas coaching and seeing the transition to Cone, he's just happy to see a continuity of the national program as the Philippines vie for an Olympic slot in the Qualifying tournament in Riga, Latvia this July.

"Tim and I are always talking. He was just here in my house a couple weeks back," Reyes said in a guest appearance at former PBA commissioner Noli Eala's sports program Power and Play last Saturday.

"You can see that even in the choice of the players, all of the players in Tim's team right now were all in our (Gilas)team (before) whether it's the SEA Games, the World Cup team, whatever. It's very clear in Tim's mind, he's continuing the program, the relationships of the players kasi magkakaamuyan na silang lahat. There's nothing new among the players."

If there's any change Reyes said he expects to be implemented, it's really more of the tactics and approach to the games.

"Obviously in terms of strategies and tactics, that's different because that's Tim. But in terms of direction and program, we're very happy that Tim is doing a really good job so in that sense, I'm still connected," explained the 59-year-old TNT mentor.

The nine-time PBA champion coach said in the run up to the 2024 Olympic Qualifying tournament, he'll expect Cone to make some adjustments, particularly on personnel issues given injuries, or potential schedule conflicts.

Reyes reasoned that keeping a 12-man roster intact wouldn't be possible due to a number of variables that could affect a team any time.

"Before, we started with a larger pool because of scheduling, because there was the SEA Games and the different tournaments. But towards the end, we had to cut it down to 16 players, 18 players, which is what Tim has (been doing) right now," shared the six-time PBA Coach of the Year. "I know he has his first 12, but then he (eventually) added Japeth (Aguilar), then he added Mason Amos, and he'll continue to add as the situation arises."

"If you count Tim's pool, it's almost the same number of 16 to 17 (players). It can't simply be 12 because there will be injuries, or someone will get sick or have scheduling issues. It's virtually impossible to just name 12 so in that sense, it's kind of similar," he added.

Early this April, Cone named Aguilar and Amos, Ateneo's sweet-shooting big man as alternates for Gilas, noting that the two new additions will cover the Philippine team front court, which is missed the likes of AJ Edu, June Mar Fajardo and Jamie Malonzo last February due to injuries during the 2025 FIBA Asia Cup Qualifiers.

The 6-foot-9 Aguilar brings in additional veteran presence, while Amos injects youth and dynamism under Cone.

Gilas opened the FIBA Asia Cup Qualifiers by smothering Hong Kong, 94-64, before blasting Taiwan to smithereens, 106-53 in Manila during the national squad's two scheduled games last February.

Come June, the Philippine team will regroup and prepare for the 2024 Olympic Qualifying Tournament slated this July, where Gilas has the unenviable task of beating basketball powerhouse squads like host country Latvia and Georgia in a bid to keep its Olympic dream in Paris, France alive.

2024-04-28T16:15:14Z dg43tfdfdgfd