Former Gilas Pilipinas head coach Chot Reyes has thrown in his support for current mentor Yeng Guiao and this iteration of the Men’s National Basketball Team, saying that he believes in the ‘optimistic’ chances of the country advancing to the second round of the upcoming 2019 FIBA World Cup.
Reyes did admit Gilas has landed in a tough Group D with top four Serbia, 13th-ranked Italy, and 39th-seed Angola. However, he remains confident in the Nationals’ chances when they participate in the quadrennial basketball conclave set from August 31 to September in Foshan, China.
“To be honest, I’m very optimistic about our chances,” said Reyes, who made history in 2014 when he towed Gilas Pilipinas to its first World Cup appearance after four decades.
“I think Angola is beatable, the way we were able to defeat Senegal before. Italy will be tough, but I don’t think they’re as strong as Argentina or Greece. I think may chance tayo diyan. Serbia admittedly will be very very tough,” the five-time PBA Coach of the Year continued.
“Parang Croatia naman yan dati sa atin. But then ‘yung Croatia we took them to overtime. ‘Di mo talaga masasabi eh.”
Reyes’ confidence in the country’s fates can be traced back to their commendable 2014 stint. The then lower-ranked and heavy underdog Philippine quintet nearly landed massive upsets against superior squads – three which were Top 10-ranked teams.
Those were Croatia, Greece, and Argentina, as well as Puerto Rico, to which the Nationals only lost to by an average of 5.75 points.
“First of all, all the teams are tough. But at least there’s only one top team in our group (Serbia). Kasi sa 2014, there were three top ten teams in our group and nasabayan natin lahat,” he opined.
“We have proven before that we can compete and that there’s no reason with this team now, with the players that we have, with coach Yeng’s system, with Andray Blatche in shape, there’s no reason for us to improve on that previous one win in 2014.”
Reyes also said that Gilas can maximize their more relaxed schedule and format, since the Filipinos will only play in between days. They start their campaign against Italy on August 31, then Serbia on September 2, before closing their group phase schedule against Angola on September 4.
Gilas Pilipinas will need two wins to advance in the second round – manageable, according to Reyes.
“Ang ganda ng schedule natin ngayon eh. Laro, pahinga. Laro, pahinga, laro, pahinga. Unlike before, everyday may laro so mabubugbog talaga tayo. So that’s another positive for Gilas,” he furthered.
With this, Reyes has offered Guiao a helping hand, saying that he’s more than willing to help in any way he can in a bid to turn Gilas Pilipinas into a competitive team for the world championships.
“Coach Yeng and I have been communicating by text, and we’re going to sit down soon to figure out if I can help in any way, just to give some inputs, some stuff to think about. Whatever help he needs, I’m more than willing to give it.”
