Jordan Clarkson Reacts on Gilas Head Coach Chot Reyes Being Booed
Gilas Pilipinas star guard Jordan Clarkson admits feeling little weird at head coach Chot Reyes getting booed by the Filipino basketball fans.
The Utah Jazz star was concerned after witnessing the Araneta Coliseum crowd boo Gilas head coach prior of their FIBA World Cup game against Italy. When the national team coach was presented, the Big Dome crowd booed.
Following defeats to the Dominican Republic and Angola in their first two Group A games, the Philippines had great aspirations for the 2023 FIBA World Cup, but they lost all three games in the First Round.
Meanwhile, during the post-game interview, JC was asked about the booing from the Filipino crown following Tuesday’s loss to Italy. The Gilas star guard admitted that it was a strange circumstance knowing that the home team needed all the help they could get to advance to the Second Round.
“I’m not around the situation to figure out what it’s for or whatever as much. But yeah, I guess it is a little weird with us hosting and us being the host country. Like you said, it does, at that point, feel a little weird. Kind of just out of the ordinary, honestly,” JC said.
“It’s a little weird. Especially as host, as a home country. I don’t know really much about the situation, but it’s feel a little weird,” said Clarkson, who scored 23 points in their 90-83 loss to Italy.
The star of the Utah Jazz then refused to elaborate. Clarkson went on to laud his team for battling the basketball powerhouse led by his Jazz teammate Simone Fontecchio. He went on to say that they did not back down even when faced with the larger rosters of Dominican Republic and Angola.
“It’s a tough game, but I think we competed,” said Clarkson. “We competed in all three games. Came out here and gave our best efforts trying to figure out these games.”
“We fight, we haven’t given up throughout the whole game. Basketball is a game of missed shots and ups and downs. We string together runs, we fight to the end of the horn,” he said, based on the report of ABS-CBN News.
Gilas’ fight was eventually insufficient to advance them to the World Cup’s second round. Gilas went behind by as much as 18 points, and despite a late rally improved the final score, they were unable to overcome Italy’s deficit.
The Philippines will now aim to rescue their campaign in the classification phase, where they may still qualify for the Olympics if they finish first in Asia. Unfortunately for Reyes, Gilas still has two games left in the classification phase, and his booing are unlikely to stop anytime soon, no matter how many times his teammates defend him.
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