QUIETLY, TNT has locked up Chot Reyes to a new contract, a nice reward for a coach who is in the middle of a grand slam chase.
SPIN.ph has learned that the only six-time recipient of the PBA Coach of the Year award signed the deal much earlier. Sources said the signing happened following the Tropang 5G’s successful Governors’ Cup title defense, or even before it bagged the mid-season Commissioner’s Cup.
Terms of the deal were not made available by people close to the 61-year-old mentor, which is usual, as salaries, the actual ones, for coaches -- and even players-- are barely disclosed.
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But the move obviously brought significant result for the telecommunication franchise, which on Sunday night moved four wins away from achieving what no other team has done for more than a decade.
For Reyes and TNT, winning the grand slam would be a vindication of the dissapointment of 2011 where the coach, handling the same team, were on the verge of winning the slam.
It was a Game 7 and the Petron Blaze Boosters, San Miguel's previous team name, stood in the way. But as fate would have it, Petron denied TNT's bid
TNT does not know yet whether it will face San Miguel because the Beermen will have to first eliminate Ginebra which they will face on Wednesday in what is expected to be a blockbuster Game 7.
It is not known which of the two teams Chot would like to meet in the finals. Likely, it does not matter. All he wants is a grand slam and he hopes the second time will be a lucky charm.
BVS change of heart leads to Alas duty?
It’s been over a year since Brooke Van Sickle’s name was first thrown in the mix for a future national team stint.
While her Alas Pilipinas debut has come into fruition in the 2025 VTV Cup, it was merely an invitational tournament that was not bound by FIVB’s player eligibility rules pertaining to citizenship.
For months, she’s been pushed to file the necessary paperwork to change federations, but her plans seemed to have always stalled.
Van Sickle is now determined to change the narrative, sources said.
SPIN.ph has learned that after careful consideration and talks with the Philippine National Volleyball Federation (PNVF), Van Sickle has completed the documentary requirements needed to be considered a full-fledged Philippine national team player.
Following a brief vacation after Petro Gazz’ 2024-25 PVL All-Filipino Conference title win, Van Sickle’s first order of business was to get her requirements done and sorted.
As such, she along with Petro Gazz teammate MJ Phillips and Choco Mucho setter Tia Andaya are now just waiting for their requests to get final approval from the FIVB. If successful, the SEA Games gold medal may have become reachable.
Is Tenorio retiring at the end of Ginebra's season?
LA Tenorio is keeping his cards close to his chest.
When asked whether he will be retiring at the end of the current PBA Philippine Cup, or at the end of the season, the veteran point guard said:
“You’ll never know what’s going to happen. The next day. The next week. I may not be playing anymore. You’ll never know. What I’ve learned from Coach Tim throughout the years even with Alaska is to just stay in the moment, just focus on what’s in front of you,” said Tenorio.
It's as vague an answer as you can get, but by directly addressing this question with that kind of answer, one can almost conclude that Tenorio wants to play until he no longer could.
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Though he had dropped hints of his impending retirement - he's been at it for 18 seasons - Tenorio suddenly showed himself still capable of delivering the goods on Sunday when he buried a game-winning three-pointer with 3.1 seconds left to lift Barangay Ginebra to an 88-87 win over San Miguel to force a Game 7 in the Philippine Cup semifinals.
He had 11 points on 4-of-5 shooting from the field in nine minutes of play. He also added two rebounds and two assists for the Gin Kings.
Now, who would want to retire after an outing like Sunday's?
Incidentally, Game 7 on Wednesday will be Tenorio’s 41st birthday.
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