Many would think that coach Chot Reyes heaved a sigh of relief after they finally came up with the national team's final roster for the FIBA World Cup.

But Reyes said the process had been very difficult.

"I'd like to call it ‘the deepest cut,’” the Gilas tactician said a day before their game against Dominican Republic.

From 16 players, the coaching staff had to cut out Japan BLeague players Thirdy Ravena and Ray Parks Jr., TNT's Calvin Oftana and Meralco's Chris Newsome.

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“(It's) really difficult. Some guys we had to cut who were there from Day 1… Three days ago, I was very subdued after practice because I told them that the coaching staff is about to make a tough decision. But it falls on me to deliver the news,” said the Gilas head coach.

This left the squad with Utah Jazz star Jordan Clarkson, big men June Mar Fajardo, AJ Edu, Kai Sotto and Japeth Aguilar, PBA Most Valuable Player Scottie Thompson, Jamie Malonzo, Roger Pogoy, CJ Perez and overseas players Dwight Ramos, Kiefer Ravena, and Rhenz Abando.

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“Like I told them, it’s not because of anything they did wrong or a deficiency on their part. It’s just that we had to make a choice," said Reyes.

"In the end, we had 16 guys and we can only choose 12. And then for me, that is really a coach’s most difficult job.”

For more stories on the FIBA World Cup, click here.

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