Former UST Growling Tigers head coach Aldin Ayo has denied reports of being hired as coach of the Converge Fiber Xers in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA), saying he had yet to make a formal commitment to any team.
Ayo made the clarification in a statement posted on his Facebook account, days after he resigned from his head coaching duties at Chooks-to-Go Pilipinas 3×3 to focus on helping his ailing mother.
“I’m surprised. Things are happening fast. I have not made any formal commitment to [Converge]” he said.
Ayo was reportedly hired by Converge after it let go of head coach Jeffrey Cariaso.
The former UST likened the reports to rumors of him being hired by collegiate teams, which he said did not materialize.
“I am preoccupied at the moment with the chemotherapy of my mother,” Ayo said, “[b]ut I am flattered that I’m being considered as the head coach of the Converge Fiber Xers. This would be a big challenge and opportunity for any basketball coach, but I would like to seriously talk to my mother about it before deciding.”
Ayo brought the Growling Tigers to a finals appearance in UAAP Season 82 in 2019 where they lost to the Ateneo Blue Eagles.
But in 2020, the Ayo-led Tigers figured in a “Sorsogon bubble” controversy that led to the fallout that caused the team to rebuild.
