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Gilas Pilipinas Youth hopes to return to its winning ways with LA Tenorio at the helm as basketball officials see the veteran Ginebra guard as a ‘natural leader and a winner on and off the court’
MANILA, Philippines – The Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP) appointed veteran floor general LA Tenorio as the new head coach of Gilas Pilipinas Youth, the federation announced on Tuesday, November 19.
Tenorio, 40, succeeds Josh Reyes, who stepped down from his post last September following a string of dismal showings in FIBA tournaments.
“The SBP is excited to have a true sportsman and role model in LA Tenorio as our Gilas Pilipinas Youth head coach,” said SBP president Al Panlilio in a statement.
“He has great relationships with coach Norman Black, who heads our grassroots program, and coach Tim Cone of the elite level, and he’ll serve as the bridge between the two,” he continued.
“When we first talked to LA about the idea, he was open to the challenge immediately and he even had a short list of coaches that he wanted to work with. He’s a natural leader and a winner on and off the court. He will teach our young athletes lessons they will use not only in basketball but in life as well.”
Tenorio donned the nation’s colors for more than a decade, making the game-winning floater in the Philippines’ William Jones’ triumph over the United States in 2012.
He was also part of Gilas’ 2013 FIBA Asia Championship silver medal-winning team, as well as the squad that played in the 2014 FIBA World Cup in Spain.
Bonnie Tan first gave Tenorio a shot in coaching, allotting him an assistant spot when the former coached the Letran Knights in the NCAA.
Following his retirement from national team playing duty, Tenorio served as an assistant under Gilas Men head coach Tim Cone in the 19th Asian Games gold-medal romp in 2023, while he was recovering from cancer.
“Coach Tim is big on continuity and that has been the reason why we’ve had a small pool for Gilas ever since he took over,” said SBP executive director Erika Dy.
“Appointing Coach LA as head of our age group teams in the youth level strengthens that process. The goal is to complete the player journey from our grassroots to the elite level, and having a Youth coach who knows the system of coach Tim by heart will be beneficial for everyone involved.”
Tenorio, who is still an active player for Barangay Ginebra, expressed his excitement over this new opportunity.
“There’s a lot of pressure in the role because I’ll have big shoes to fill,” he said. “What coach Josh Reyes accomplished by making it to two World Cups is not an easy feat but I’m excited to work with our young players and help them reach their full potential.”
“I already talked to coach Tim and I’ll be running a similar system so our youth players can easily transition to the men’s team,” Tenorio added. – Rappler.com
