From toast to roast

The Philippine national basketball team’s dismal finish at the Asian Games in Incheon is a conscience call for Filipino fans to examine where their heart lies in the face of tragedy. Are they fair-weather fans who are first in line to toast coach Chot Reyes and Gilas when times are good and first to roast when times are bad?

When Gilas took second place at the FIBA Asia Championships here last year, the celebration across the country was unimaginable. Everyone wanted to wear a Gilas shirt and wave the Philippine flag. When Gilas stood up to the giants at the FIBA World Cup in Spain, there was reason to be proud. Gilas came close to upending the world’s No. 3 team Argentina and who will ever forget Gabe Norwood’s posterizing dunk off Luis Scola? Reyes was hailed a genius for guiding Gilas to an impressive showing in Spain. If only the Philippines didn’t lose to Croatia in overtime, Gilas would’ve advanced to the next round.

Then came the debacle in Incheon. The loss to Qatar was totally unexpected and naturalized player Marcus Douthit admitted giving up on the court. Reyes benched Douthit in the next game against South Korea as a disciplinary measure and was chastised for it. Without Douthit, Gilas opened a 16-point lead but wound up losing to the Koreans by two. Not too many fans know that Reyes called a midnight meeting before the South Korea game to talk to the team about what to do with Douthit in the player’s presence. Douthit apologized for what he did and his teammates left it up to Reyes to decide on the penalty.

Before the Kazakhstan game, Douthit’s teammates asked if he could be reinstated. Reyes agreed. It must be mentioned that Reyes never berated Douthit face to face. Douthit’s teammates, particularly Jimmy Alapag, did. Douthit’s indiscretion was tantamount to an act of desertion. Apparently, Douthit played lackadaisically in an affront to Reyes because he didn’t like the way he was yanked in and out of the court during the Qatar contest. 

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In the UAAP, the UE varsity has repeatedly taken a strong position in never wavering to bench a star player for disciplinary reasons even if it means jeopardizing the team’s championship chances. No player is bigger than the team. UE coaches Derick and Dindo Pumaren must be commended for their courage in never compromising principles at the risk of courting the ire of team fans and supporters. That’s how Reyes dealt with Douthit in Incheon. It was a hefty price to pay because the Philippines could’ve probably beaten South Korea with Douthit in harness but that’s how the cookie crumbles when you bite the bullet.

How unkind it is for fans to now vilify Reyes and Gilas for the tailspin at the Asian Games. Sure, there was that lapse when Gilas deliberately scored for Kazakhstan on an own basket but it was a desperate attempt to stay alive. Reyes asked clearance from the referees before trying the trick and was later rebuffed. It is definitely a cause for regret but not a reason to crucify anyone.

When Reyes pumped new life into Philippine basketball on the global stage, fans roared and rejoiced. But with the turn of events in Incheon, Reyes has become the target of hatred and scorn. Whatever happened to the honorable tradition of locking arms in good times and bad? 

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Alder Almo of philstar.com recently spoke with Gilas forward Ranidel de Ocampo in Incheon and the Talk ‘N’ Text star said there is no more capable coach to steer Gilas than Reyes. He confirmed that Douthit went astray in the Qatar game and the team decided to back Reyes in however he wanted to penalize the 6-11 center. De Ocampo said Douthit admitted his mistake and was remorseful.

“In my opinion, coach Chot is the only coach who knows how to fit the Pinoy style of playing against countries with bigger players,” said De Ocampo in Pilipino. “Coach is like the father of our family. If there is a child who goes astray, he disciplines him. He won’t always spoil his children. Someone can’t just break the rules and get away with it. Coach wasn’t the only one who got mad at Marcus. We all did. We were upset at what happened in the Qatar game. We initiated the meeting and supported Coach’s decision (to suspend Douthit). Marcus felt bad because he made a mistake then he wasn’t able to help us against South Korea. Everyone makes a mistake and learns from it.”

De Ocampo said a coach from Argentina or Greece or some other country wouldn’t know how to make a “short” team like the Philippines competitive. “Those who think they know better, the haters, they’re always around,” he said. “We know who support us when we win and who don’t when we lose. If fans are hurt because of what happened, what about us? It hurt us more. This was our best chance to win a medal at the Asian Games. We lost the gold. The lesson is let’s not feel this pain again.”