Reyes upbeat on Pop Cola

Pop Cola coach Chot Reyes predicts a bright future for the Panthers in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) but isn’t sure if he’ll be a part of it.

Yesterday, Reyes confided to The STAR that team owner Joey Concepcion had agreed to renew his contract but only if RFM Corp. continued to own the PBA franchise. He called it a "quirky" contract that had "a lot of outs and exceptions." Still, the bottom line was Reyes would coach the Panthers this year only if Concepcion remained the owner.

Reyes said he was told that last Jan. 3, the sale of Pop Cola to San Miguel Corp. was finalized. And with the PBA Board of Governors approval for San Miguel to take over the Pop Cola franchise as a result of the sale, Concepcion relinquished ownership.

"I understand there will be a division on the Pop Cola coaching staff within the week," said Reyes. "I don’t know what the decision will be. All I know is with only three unexpired playing contracts and two first round picks in the coming draft, the future looks good for the team."

Only the contracts of Rudy Hatfield, Estong Ballesteros, and Ato Morano are live. That means Pop Cola has the luxury of renewing or terminating the services of veterans Johnny Abarrientos, Poch Juinio, Jojo Lastimosa, Nelson Asaytono, William Antonio, Pido Jarencio, Mon Jose, and Cris Bolado.

Aside from Pop Cola’s regular No. 8 overall pick, the franchise has the No. 2 slot acquired in the Hatfield deal with Tanduay.

"If FedEx picks (Romel) Adducul first, Pop Cola can get a real quality player like Yancy de Ocampo or Chris Clay or Jeffrey Flowers or Rafi Reavis," said Reyes. "Pop has the opportunity to get some size. With two first round picks and if Pop renews Johnny and Poch to play alongside Rudy, the team has a competitive starting lineup. If Jojo and Will are renewed, the second unit will be competitive, too, what with Estong and Ato still in the team. Imagine, because of the situation with eight expiring contracts, the team won’t have a salary cap problem so it can rebuild with the talent it needs to be competitive."

Reyes, 38, said he realizes it will take some time to decide on Pop Cola’s direction, considering the sale was finalized only a few days ago. But he hopes it will be soon.

"Everyone’s making deals and draft day is coming soon," he said. "Players are calling me but I have no indication as to what to expect. I really don’t know what to say. We can’t schedule a practice yet. We don’t know which players will be renewed. However, I’m confident the new management will do what is best for the team. The outlook is bright because Pop Cola’s on the verge of a breakthrough."

Reyes admitted he has been contacted by FedEx and Talk ‘N Text inquiring about his availability. "I told them I have no commitments," said Reyes. "When FedEx was thinking about joining the PBA, Mr. (Bert) Lina and Mr. (Lito) Alvarez talked to me and asked for some inputs on how to approach the situation. Talk ‘N Text has also asked about my availability. But neither has made an offer."

Asked to choose his best option, Reyes said the choice isn’t his to make. But if he had a choice, he added, he’d like to stay at Pop Cola because he hopes to build on its success last year.