TNT head coach Chot Reyes bared that he has been heavily involved in the ongoing contract negotiations between the team and Mikey Williams.
The man wearing many hats has now assumed a big role in the talks in lieu of team manager Gabby Cui, who’s been dealing with the loss of his brother.
“I’ve been taking over the negotiating role because our team manager, Gabby Cui, just arrived from abroad,” he said moments after the Tropang Giga’s 78-72 win over Magnolia in the PBA Philippine Cup opener, Sunday night.
“Unfortunately his younger brother passed away in Canada, so he was out of commission, and I had to take over the re-negotiation,” he added.
Williams and TNT have yet to find a common ground, though. The Rookie of the Year exercised his option to renegotiate the terms of Year Two of his deal if they won a championship, which they did by ruling the 2021 Philippine Cup.
The former G-League veteran was nowhere to be seen in the season opener at the SMART Araneta Coliseum, since he is still in the United States.
“Unfortunately, the re-negotiation is going longer than expected,” admitted the outspoken bench tactician.
“I’ve been talking to him constantly, I think we’ve spoken three times over the past week on the phone.”
Reyes even went a bit harsh on himself in terms of being a negotiator, but at the same time remains hopeful that it would end the way they want it to.
“Apparently, I’m not doing a good job, ’cause I couldn’t sign him. But, you know, we’re still trying. We’re hoping,” said the 58-year-old.
And while they wait for talks to conclude, Reyes and Co. are just doing what they can to live a life without their top gunner, who was a strong candidate for Most Valuable Player honors ultimately won by Scottie Thompson.
The five-time Coach of the Year wasn’t shy to admit that they struggled with no Williams to rely on especially on offense against the defensive-oriented Hotshots, thus the relief he felt that they were able to grind it out and win.
“You could see that we were bleeding for our points, it was very hard for us to score baskets. But we expected this, we knew we would struggle big time, especially not only without Mikey, but also without Kelly [Williams] as well,” said Reyes.
“So, you know, it was just a matter of grinding it out, hunkering down on defense, and just a matter of making stop after stop. Thankfully in the crucial moments, we were able to do that.”
