IN the words of former Gilas head coach Chot Reyes himself, the country's brief campaign at the 2023 Fiba World Cup was a failure.
Speaking to Kom Noli Eala in his Power & Play program on Saturday, Reyes gave his insight on Gilas' global showpiece stint which ultimately led to his coaching exit.
"Yes (it was a failure). That is precisely why I stepped aside. I was given a mandate for a certain result and that is to qualify for the Olympics. We did not achieve that result," Chot said.
"As a leader, regardless of whatever the mitigating circumstances are, whatever the reasons are, in the end, the leader has to hold himself accountable. That’s my belief. In my leadership workshops, that’s what I preach and that’s what I talk to different leaders about. I have to be the prime example of that. I was hired to do a job," he added.

Despite giving a stronger fight than the last two editions of the World Cup, such pats in the back won't change the fact that the objectives at hand were still not reached.
"Sure we performed better than in 2014 and 2019, sure we got that one victory and all that but in the end, we did not deliver on the result that we were hired to do," Chot emphasized.
Chot Reyes on 'justified' disappointment of Gilas fans
The ex-Gilas tactician, who will return to call the shots for TNT Tropang Giga, did not shy away from the understandable frustration of Filipino fans after the national team's performance in its home World Cup.
"I think the disappointment is justified, certainly because we are passionate about our sport. We love our national team. Of course, we love to win," Reyes said.
However, he did point fingers on those he deemed to be catalysts of the public ire who quickly added fuel to the fire before and during the tournament.

"The galit was fanned by a few quarters, a few outlets, or a few people who really took advantage of it kaya nag-expand. The reason I know that is because now, grabe ‘yung nakukuha kong ‘thank you,’ appreciation, positive notes. Everywhere I go, people are very appreciative about it. There’s no person more disappointed than myself because we did not perform and did not deliver on the results," Reyes revealed.
READ: Tim Cone explains change of heart on coaching Gilas at Asiad
And on leaving the Gilas coaching post, Chot thinks it was necessary to do so to avoid adding further "distraction" to the team.
"The reason why I stepped aside is, yes may factor ‘yung social media angle, but really the two main issues are one, because I did not deliver on the result and two, because of everything that was going on, magiging distraction lang. It’s just going to start affecting the players if I stayed on.
"Part of knowing when to get into business is also knowing when to get out of business," he stresed.
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