Ateneo coach Tab Baldwin–MARLO CUETO/INQUIRER.net
The Ateneo program has experienced very few low points since Tab Baldwin set up camp in Katipunan. In fact, since the American-Kiwi coach took the reins of the Blue Eagles in 2016, this is the first time that the school has failed to make the Final Four of the UAAP men’s basketball tournament.
Ateneo wrapped its season with a 4-10 (win-loss) record after a 69-55 defeat to Adamson—the program’s fewest wins under Baldwin. Add last season’s finish (fourth place, 7-7 record in the preliminary round) and there is naturally noise in the rumor mill that Baldwin is heading for greener pastures.
So he has set the record straight.
“My decision is yes, [I am staying],” he said, amid talk that he has lost interest in coaching the Blue Eagles.
“But I’m not the ultimate decision-maker. If you want to get more confirmation, you have to talk to other people who would be involved in that decision,” he added in a chat with reporters who tailed him after Ateneo’s exit interview.
“But my goal, my decision, my earnestness is to coach the Blue Eagles next year.”
He also clarified that he has a live contract until “the end of next season.”
There were several factors that doomed Ateneo this season. And even if last year’s performance hinted that the program was not as invulnerable as it had in the past, the Blue Eagles’ four wins and semifinal miss this year still was a shock.
And certainly, losing promising stretch big Mason Amos, who redshirted this season to join rival La Salle, and a key injury before the start of the tournament played a huge role in that.
“This year, frankly, there wasn’t enough [fight] because of the departures we had in the offseason, because of the surprise circumstances that we’ve had with Mason transferring and Lebron [Nieto] getting injured in the 11th hour,” Baldwin said. “[The remaining] guys were thrust into circumstances that maybe they did not have anticipated. That doesn’t help strengthen the whole setup.”
“We got to have a more competitive team next year and I expect it will be,” Baldwin promised.
“When you come off of a dip in performance, whether you’re an individual athlete or a player in a team or a coach, if you’re a competitor, you can’t wait to get the gloves on again and do the work.”
Two more cogs will vacate the Eagles roster in Chris Koon and Sean Quitevis, seniors who have exhausted their playing years. And with all those factors, recruitment will be at the top of Ateneo’s to do list—but not in some sort of a desperate way.
Fight for roster spot
For Baldwin, the next batch of Eagles has to earn their spot in the roster. There has to be pride in wearing that blue-and-white jersey after all.
“There have to be improved performances, improved training and greater commitments from these players and the players that will join us,” he said. “We believe that the roster this year has some positional deficiencies and we’re out to fix those.”
“It’s good to be competitive to be a Blue Eagle next year for the current players and for the players we bring in. If they’re not up for that, but I think they will be, but for whatever reason they’re not, then it might be time to be thinking what else they might do,” Baldwin said. “It’s gonna be competitive, as it should be. We can’t put a lot of value in this uniform if there isn’t a fight to put it on. Before there could be a ‘One Big Fight’ on the court, there should be a one bigger fight to get into that uniform.” INQ