TNT FIRES TAB
Fate at SBP, Blue Eagles still unknown
Tab Baldwin is no longer part of the TNT KaTropa coaching staff after drawing the ire of several members of the local basketball community with comments made in a video podcast almost two weeks ago.
A highly placed source told the Manila Bulletin that Baldwin was relieved of his duties as assistant coach and consultant in the aftermath of the comments on PBA policies on imports and officiating and by describing local coaches as “tactically immature.”
Baldwin was later suspended three games and fined 175,000 by PBA commissioner Willie Marcial for what the league described as “detrimental comments.”
“Coach Tab will be focusing on his coaching chores in Ateneo and his role in SBP,” said TNT team manager Gabby Cui.
“We decided on this transition way before the lockdown. The team is adapting well to the system of coach Bong Ravena and team consultant Mark Dickel. We would like to thank coach Tab and wish him well.”
It is unknown if Baldwin’s ouster will affect his other roles as coach of three-time defending UAAP champion Ateneo and program director of Gilas Pilipinas.
The former Gilas coach has more prominent tasks handling both jobs compared to TNT where the duties are shared mostly by coach Bong Ravena and active consultant Mark Dickel, Baldwin’s former player with the New Zealand national team.
Whether Baldwin is set to lose the Ateneo coaching job and Gilas role in the immediate future remains a speculation.