For the second straight year, I had the privilege of speaking with the coach of the Philippine Cup champions shortly after winning the title. Over dinner and beer last Tuesday night, Coach Chot Reyes joined me and bloggers from Patay Ang Butiki and From the Stands to shoot the breeze and talk hoops. Because we were all basketball nerds, we ended up talking about everything from the series against San Miguel to his MBA stint to what happened between him and Jun Limpot.

But most of our conversation focused on Talk N Text, Smart Gilas, and the Ateneo Blue Eagles. Here’s the stuff (I think) I can publish:

On the Philippine Cup finals against San Miguel:

“We should have won game 4,” he answered candidly when I asked why the series went six games, when Talk N Text was in control early on. “But Larry and Jimmy missed those free throws at the end of the game.”

When asked about his team’s game three performance, Reyes had an interesting explanation. “I didn’t think my boys believed they could beat San Miguel three times in a row,” he said. “If Ryan Reyes had been there, maybe we could have done it.”

On Ryan Reyes:

Coach Chot believes Ryan Reyes should have been named Most Valuable Player of the Finals against San Miguel. The burly guard’s defense on Arwind Santos, the coach said, was the big key to the series. “It allowed us to play with a three-guard lineup to quicken the pace against San Miguel,” he said.

He is constantly worried about injuries that could hound Ryan, who plays every game with reckless abandon. “He doesn’t care about sacrificing his body,” Coach Chot said. “Even in practice, he goes all out.”

On Kelly Williams:

Reyes revealed that the 2008 PBA MVP is still taking medication as part of the treatment for his illness from two years ago, which explains Williams’ up-and-down performance. “The medication makes him retain a lot of water, and makes him feel bloated,” he said. There are also side effects that lead to mood swings and sudden drops in energy levels.

The Bacolod game also posed an interesting challenge for Williams. “He has some sort of phobia in Bacolod, because he first missed a game there – during the All-Star weekend playing for the national team — after being diagnosed for his illness,” Reyes said. “Then he got better, Sta. Lucia played in Bacolod again, and he came down with the illness again.”

On letting Jay Washington go:

“It was about finding balance for the team,” he said. “When I started coaching Talk N Text, the focus really was on offense. I traded for tough guys, yung makikipag-palitan ng mukha.”

On trading Mac Cardona:

Coach Chot says the decision to trade the high-scoring guard became clear to him after the Tropang Texters lost to Alaska in the 2010 Fiesta Conference semifinals. However, the idea encountered a lot of opposition from team management, who worried about how the squad would replace Cardona’s 20-ppg output.

“They’re linear thinkers,” the coach explained. “It wasn’t clear to them that letting Cardona go would open up minutes for Ryan Reyes and Jason Castro to develop.”

On Larry Fonacier:

He was confident that he’d be able to bring out the best in Fonacier, given their relationship from their common Ateneo connection, which goes back several years. Larry’s sharpshooting gave the Texters the perimeter firepower they were sorely missing.

“People forget, when we won the 2009 Philippine Cup, it was with a shorter three-point line,” he said. “Yancy and Ranidel de Ocampo, Cardona, they could make three-pointers then. [But with the longer line] nag-iiba na yung pulso nila.

On the Talk N Text bench:

“I think Aaron Aban gives the most value for the money we’re paying him,” Reyes said of his defensive stalwart.

When asked about game 3, when several of his players were involved in very physical plays, he said that he didn’t instruct his guys to play that way, contrary to some claims. “Sabi nila, may instructions daw ako, eh ganun talaga maglaro yung mga yun, kahit sa practice,” he said. “Kahit yung mga teammates nila, nasasaktan nila. Ang tawag nga namin sa mga yun, Curimao Boys.”

On Smart Gilas:

Reyes said that Coach Rajko Toroman became a believer in Jimmy Alapag this conference, and that the point guard is a virtual shoo-in to reinforce Gilas for the 2011 Fiba-Asia championships. He also thinks that the team needs James Yap badly. “We need a volume three-point shooter on the team,” he said.

On coaching the Ateneo Blue Eagles:

“I’ve always said that’s my dream job,” he said. “But how are you going to replace Norman Black?”

On Norman Black going back to the PBA:

When asked if he thinks Coach Norman the higher level of coaching in the more competitive PBA, Coach Chot says he probably does. “But now that he’s coaching Ateneo and consults for Talk N Text, he’s got the best of both worlds,” he says.

“He’s a great coach,” Reyes adds. “In fact, when I got the job to coach the national team, I immediately asked him to be my assistant.”

On Greg Slaughter playing for Ateneo:

“I was surprised,” Reyes said. “I thought he was going to join the PBA. But I think his parents really want him to get a degree first.”

On Kiefer Ravena:

Coach Chot said he thought Kiefer made the right decision to stay with Ateneo. “I told Bong, in the United States, there are 6-5, 6-6 players who shoot as well and play as well as Kiefer,” he said. The elder Ravena, he said, is also well aware of the long history of talented second-generation players who have failed to live up to their potential – the Hubalde brothers, the Guidaben brothers, the Cabatu brothers, and yes, even Japeth Aguilar.

On his fashion sense:

“It started when we got the franchise for Toni & Guy here in Manila,” he said. “I was one of the first guys who introduced London fashion to the Philippines.”