LA Tenorio tells Gilas Pilipinas to stay off social media

Brgy. Ginebra guard LA Tenorio is a member of arguably the most successful Gilas Pilipinas squad in history. This group was responsible for bringing the country into the 2014 FIBA World Cup, where the Filipinos gave Croatia and Puerto Rico a good fight before losing and eventually pulling off a victory over Senegal.

Therefore, it is safe to say that Tenorio understands how a national team can achieve success on the international stage. And if he had his way, he would like this current Gilas team to accomplish something that the 2013–2014 squad accomplished: Stop using social media.

Taking time away from social media is a hard but necessary sacrifice for Gilas Pilipinas as preparations for the upcoming FIBA World Cup shifts into high gear.

“We agreed na we cannot read social media. Nag-start kami mag-prepare, and especially nung training proper, we cannot read social media. And we were all disciplined. We made a decision. We had that rule, in every competition that we did before the World Cup in Spain, every tournament. As soon as we started the preparation and played in a tournament, we cannot read social media,” explained Tenorio during an episode of Playitright TV.

According to the Gilas veteran, it was indeed effective.

“Nakatulong siya kasi we were focused. Hindi naman sa pagmamayabang, but we had a good run. One thing na pwede ko i-suggest sa kanila is do that. There’s too much noise outside and you cannot really focus because now, it is a social media world. But they should try,” added Tenorio.

This, however, is easier said than done with today’s generation hooked on social media. A number of Gilas players are actually active – Thirdy and Kiefer Ravena, Dwight Ramos, and Bobby Ray Parks Jr. to name a few. Even head coach Chot Reyes is active on Instagram, while assistant coach Tim Cone posts from time to time on Twitter.

But if the national team wants to perform well in the quadrennial basketball meet which opens in two weeks, everyone must be willing to do whatever it takes, including giving up social media for a short period of time.

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