Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP) Board of Trustees member Raul “Yayoy” Alcoseba clarified that, contrary to reports that have been coming out Thursday, erstwhile embattled Gilas Pilipinas head coach Chot Reyes, was not sacked from his position.
Alcoseba, who was at the SBP meeting last Tuesday, reiterated that the Gilas Pilipinas squad has indeed been disbanded and in place, two selection committees were created and tasked to form national teams for two separate tournaments – the Southeast Asian Basketball Championship and the Fiba Asia Championship.
As a matter of fact, Alcoseba made mention that Reyes’ status was not at all discussed during the said meeting that was presided over by SBP president and sports patron Manny V. Pangilinan.
“I would just like to clarify that Chot (Reyes) was not fired or sacked or anything,” Alcoseba, the champion coach of Southwestern University, said in an interview yesterday. “It’s just that a committee that will be composed of representatives from the different stakeholders of the SBP was formed with the mandate of creating a national pool for different international tournaments. This means that it won’t be only the PBA that will have a say in the national team’s composition.”
FIBA WORLD CUP BID
Various subjects were also brought up during the said meeting, including the country’s bid for the Fiba World Cup in 2019, which Alcoseba said the SBP will definitely pursue next year.
“MVP (Pangilinan) said that it will cost P2 billion to host the event. And the SBP will utilize different venues which will include Cebu’s SM Seaside City. So that’s something worth looking forward to,” the Cebu Provincial Board Member added.