TALK ‘N Text defense specialist Ryan Reyes would have been a shoo-in for the Gilas Pilipinas squad if not for the hamstring injury he sustained during the PBA Commissioner’s Cup quarterfinal series against Petron last April.
The injury forced national coach Chot Reyes to place the combo guard in Gilas Pilipinas’ inactive pool since May.
And with the Gilas coach naming the national team’s final 12 on Thursday that was without Beau Belga, Reyes vowed to rejoin the national squad as a practice player and help prepare the team for the tough grind in the Fiba-Asia men’s championships come August 1.
“Yeah I know, it’s hard (not to be able to help Gilas). Unfortunately, I was hurt and I wasn’t able to join them. So I went to LA (Los Angeles) to recover and have my therapy for about three-and-a-half weeks,” Reyes shared to Spin.ph.
The 29-year-old Reyes said with barely three weeks left before the Fiba-Asia cage joust, he would try to go to as many Gilas practices as his schedule permits since Talk ‘N Text resumed its team practice last Monday at the Moro Lorenzo gym.
“I’ll be practicing again when they come back from New Zealand. As long as the Talk ‘N Text practice isn’t heavy, I’ll go back there and show my support for Gilas,” vowed the four-time PBA all-defensive team member.
Reyes played through pain during the entire playoffs of the Commissioner’s Cup as Talk ‘N Text eventually bowed to Barangay Ginebra, 3-2 in their best-of-five semifinal series.
The California State University alumnus missed Gilas’ exhibition game against the PBA All-Stars in Digos City, Davao del Sur on early May, the first time the national training squad played together since being assembled in February.
Reyes then decided to drop Reyes from the pool, along with fellow Talk ‘N Text player Kelly Williams (blood disorder), Meralco’s Jared Dillinger (fractured pelvic) and Alaska big man Sonny Thoss (back).
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