MANILA, Philippines - Glass Pilipinas coach Chhote Reyes was not surprised to learn that Araneta Coliseum fans were shouting for Tab Baldwin, although he did not hear the chants in person.
Fans inside the Big Dome called for Baldwin to return as head coach of the Glass Pilipinas after the national team suffered an 88–63 loss against New Zealand in the FIBA World Cup Asian Qualifier.
Speaking at CNN Philippines' sports desk on Monday morning, Reyes said he had not heard the chants of "We want Baldwin," which the crowd reportedly did as glasses fell in the second half.
Reyes, who took over as Glass' coach in early February, said, "I didn't hear it last night, to be very honest, Samhang Basketball ng Pilipinas (SBP) said that Baldwin had taken over his duties with Ateneo De. had opted to concentrate on the University of Manila.
The coach also said, "Actually, when the ball game starts, I don't listen much, I don't watch much because my entire focus is on what's going on."
However, his family informed him of what happened, and Reyes took the chants and criticisms seriously.
"Just (to be) very honest, I expected it. I came to this job, I accepted this job with my open eyes. I had no pretense, I had no illusions that it was going to be easy ,” Reyes said.
He said, "I knew I was going to get widely cursed, and criticized, and hated, and yet I took it. Because it's never going to get in the way of my service to my country."
Reyes has previously had great success with the national team, most notably in 2013 when it led them to second place in the FIBA Asia Championships, which earned them a spot at the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup.
But his tenure ended in a disgrace in 2018 as he resigned following the national team's infamous feud with Australia in the FIBA World Cup qualifiers.
SBP's decision to replace Baldwin with Reyes was met with mixed reactions, as Filipino fans questioned the timing and wisdom behind the move.
Baldwin was widely celebrated for implementing a program and a system that made Glass a huge success in 2021. Notably, a youth team with no PBA players defeated South Korea twice in a FIBA Asia Cup qualifier.
Thus it was not entirely surprising that fans, even while cheering for the national team, expressed their feelings about Reyes.
"It's the least of my problems," Reyes said of the fans' demands. "I have far bigger problems on my plate right now, for the haters and the slanderers, than the attention they deserve."
Reyes also said that the same fans who are asking him to be replaced by Baldwin have no idea "what's going on" within the national team and program. SBP, when it announced Reyes' appointment, did not fully explain Baldwin's departure and did not include any words from the former coach.
Baldwin has yet to make public comment on his exit from the national team program.
Reyes said, "They don't know what's going on inside. I mean, if they're inside here, they can speak, and they can comment whatever they want, if they know what's going on." "
"But unless they're on the inside, on the inside of the team, what they say means little to me. I don't pay any attention to it," he insisted.
Reyes said he only wished fans to "just be kind".
"Just be kind and compassionate, because hate will get you nowhere. The bitterness inside the haters on the show or in me personally, what's it going to get you out of, right?" he said.
"So just be kind because we never really know what other people are going through."