The Philippine basketball community mourns the death of Sheryl Reyes, who passed away last Thursday, May 9 at the age of 39 after a long battle with cervical cancer.
Reyes is known for helping establish the careers of Barangay Ginebra Kings’ Justin Brownlee and San Miguel Alab Pilipinas’ Renaldo Balkman, to name a few. She also brought former National Basketball Association (NBA) stars Allen Iverson, Stephon Marbury, and Lamar Odom to the Philippines.
The news was first announced on fellow agent Charlie Dy’s social media, who posted a photo with Reyes captioned, “Rest in peace. I will miss you. Thank you for all the help and fun times. Till we meet again.” Former Alab Pilipinas member Bobby Ray Parks also wrote, “May you rest in peace. No more pain and suffering for you to deal with,” on his Twitter. Sports Analyst Chuck Araneta added, “There will never be another Sheryl Reyes… and she will be missed. RIP ma’am.”
Brownlee did not shy away from expressing his sadness, saying, “This is hard to take in. I can’t believe this! You changed my life so much. Thank you for your hard work and your dedication to not only me, but to everyone that you inspired and blessed with your presences. You will be missed dearly. You’re the realest person I know. Everything you said you would do, you did it.”
Ex-pro Jimmy Alapag shared with his more than 154,000 Instagram followers a long message to Reyes, saying, “So glad I had an opportunity to tell you how much I appreciated ALL your help through the years, especially during my first season as a head coach. From this early morning breakfast sitting in last place in the ABL, to celebrating together our run to the championship. Wouldn’t have happened without you.”
Barangay Ginebra Coach Tim Cone also posts, “Crushed to hear of the passing of Sheryl Reyes. She was so full of life and so young, it’s tough to imagine she’s gone. She changed the fortunes of myself and the Ginebra team by bringing in our champion import. Forever grateful. She will be missed greatly.”
In 2017, Reyes got engaged to former Adamson Soaring Falcons’ big man, Papi Sarr. Her remains now lie at Arlington Chapels in Quezon City.