Chot Reyes clarifies why CJ Perez was benched in Gilas' loss to Dominicans

Gilas Pilipinas head coach Chot Reyes knows CJ Perez can give their offensive flow a boost anytime of the day.

However, the veteran tactician explained why the San Miguel Beerman and former top overall pick was a DNP (did not play) during their 87-81 loss to Dominican Republic on Friday in the 2023 FIBA World Cup.

According to Reyes, they did not experience a struggle on offense all throughout the game with the likes of Jordan Clarkson, Dwight Ramos, and June Mar Fajardo providing the lift themselves.

"I felt the guys who were inside were playing really well and we were right in the ballgame," Reyes said in the press conference.

But the Filipinos suffered a huge blow when Clarkson wasn't able to finish the game after getting whistled with five fouls with 3:32 left in the fourth quarter as they trailed the visitors, 79-76.

Despite that, Reyes said subbing Perez in could only do more harm than good as Scottie Thompson, RR Pogoy, and Ramos manning the backcourt for Gilas until the final buzzer.

"We need CJ when we have a scoring drought and when we need something going on in the court but like I said, we were fine all the way through until the last five minutes when Jordan fouled out," Reyes added.

"With what went, I thought it was too late to insert somebody who was ice-cold from the bench. When the situation calls for it, CJ and even Kai should be ready."

—JKC, GMA Integrated News