DESPITE the anger and displeasure of the fans toward head coach Chot Reyes, Kiefer Ravena said he will continue to play for him as Gilas Pilipinas' campaign at the 2023 Fiba Basketball World Cup goes down to its last two games.
Ravena said nothing will change as far as his mindset is concerned in Gilas' games in the classification phase, where one Paris Olympics spot reserved for a lone Asian team will be at stake.
READ: Clarkson finds boos for Chot 'a little weird'
The boos on Reyes and the hate on social is all tuned out.
“I know it’s been happening. But I’m gonna play for my coach until the wheels fall off,” said Ravena. “That is something that I have to lead by example – me, Japeth [Aguilar], and most of the guys that have been here.”
“This is not the first time that it has happened. Alam niyo naman ‘yun. Pero lalaban kami,” said Ravena, who is in the second World Cup of his career.
Ravena had not spared from disparaging remarks on social media during the team’s build-up for the World Cup, but hopes fans will continue to support Gilas even though the team had already missed a ticket to the second round.
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“We have to use that crowd as an advantage, not as a disadvantage. ‘Yun naman ang pinaka-rason kung bakit natin dinala itong event na ‘to dito. Kailangan namin ma-flip ‘yung script na gawin naming advantage kesa kabahan kami, hindi kami makapaglaro ng maayos kasi naririnig namin ‘yung mga ginagawa ng crowd.”
“Pero at the end of the day, nagpapasalamat pa rin kami sa mga sumusuporta. Pero sana, from this stage, lapit naman na din matapos, suportahan niyo na lang kami,” said Ravena.
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