Pinoy Hoops on Pacific Rims.

Three Mondays ago, it was the middle of my semester break from school as I was getting set for aa transition from academic life to going into the workplace for my practicum. I was surfing chnnels on TV, when I got to the National Geographic Channel, it was about 5 minutes to 9pm. The 8pm show was finished, they showed a promo that Pinoy Hoops is coming up next. I got curious about what’s with it, so I did not switch channels as I sit back on the sofa and prepare to watch what is to come. Little did I know, I was in for a treat unlike any other.

 Photo ©National Geographic Channel Philippines

“Pinoy Hoops: A National Obsession” is a three-part documentary series that was shot in 2011 shown within a three week period. It shows the travels of Rafe Bartholomew, an American sports journalist and “hoop nut” as he goes for a journey across the Philippines to explore the very roots of Philippine basketball as he seeks to discover why is the country obsessed with the sport despite the fact that Filipinos lack of height as it is an important aspect of the sport especially on the international stage like the Olympics and FIBA Basketball World Cup. At the start of every episode, Rafe tells something about himself, from his beginnings in New York to writing the book “Pacific Rims” which I also read and I will also have something about it on this entry later, and the fact that he was a one-time soap opera star on Philippine TV.

The first part of the documentary, focuses on the grass roots of Philippine basketball, where Filipinos form basketball courts on any place and surface from abandoned hotel halls to dirt fields in the mountains, to streets outside their homes and even near sanitary landfills. It tackles street ball within the country as it serves as a mean to keep people away from unwanted vices especially in rough conditions most of our countrymen are living into. It also states that footwear like shoes or slippers is not necessarily required whenever playing on the basketball court. It also states a myth where deep in the mountains, the military and the communist forces drop their arms and play basketball over dirt surface courts. Another distinct fact is basketball karaoke where basketball highlights from NBA players like Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, etc. are put into the karaoke which is another Philippine pastime. As well as their obsession with basketball video games like NBA 2K played on coin-operated machines.

The second part goes inside the Philippine Basketball Assocation, it was the 2011 Commissioner’s Cup Finals between the Talk ‘N Text Tropang Texters and the Barangay Ginebra Kings (now known as Barangay Ginebra San Miguel). It showcases the history of the league which is the second oldest professional basketball league after the NBA. It goes inside the Ginebra lore starting from the days of “The Big J” Sonny Jaworski who was made “Never say die!” the battle cry of the Ginebra faithful over the years and made it the most popular franchise of the PBA. It also stated that unlike the NBA where franchises are representing locations, PBA franchises are based up product names. The second part also gave an all-access pass of the Finals, from both Talk ‘N Text and Ginebra’s practice sessions as well as the games itself. Back then, Talk ‘N Text was coached by current Gilas Pilipinas coach Chot Reyes and Ginebra was coached by one of Reyes’ assistants in the national team in Jong Uichico. It showed highlights of Game 4 which Talk ‘N Text won to take a 3-1 lead, Game 5 where Ginebra kept their season alive, to the title-clinching Game 6 victory of Talk ‘N Text. It also showcases the life of a PBA import as they got into the life of TNT’s import during the conference in Paul Harris. The PBA sets height limits for imports (people of different nationalities other than Filipino) which is a distinct feature of the league as compared to other professional leagues around the world.

The final part focuses on four individuals where basketball plays a huge role in their lives. First was Sharon, who is a saboteur hired by different teams to distract opponents in games using different methods which I cannot state here in whole. Tony Lu, the PBA’s legendary photographer who covered the league from it’s humble beginnings to the present, the documentary got into his house where it was stacked with game photos, unorganized but spanning decades. Mang Tom, Alaska’s practice coach and a former PBA referee where they went to the ruins of his old house that was destroyed by Typhoon Ondoy in 2009 and will soon be demolished as it was bought by a development firm as well as his new home up north in Bulacan, and finally JC, the MVP representing Quezon City playing in inter-barangay leagues and his hopes that basketball will bring him a better standing in life. The final part describes what happened to the four as Sharon and Tony Lu continued on with their jobs, Mang Tom retired and is now with family, and JC was given a athletic scholarship.

As I watched Pinoy Hoops, I noticed that he wrote a book about Philippine basketball called Pacific Rims. I wanted to the read the book for myself, so I went out to look for and buy the book. It took me a couple of days of searching through different bookstores across the city, then on a Sunday before the last episode of Pinoy Hoops, I finally was able to secure and buy the book.

Photo ©Rafe Bartholomew

“Pacific Rims: Beermen Ballin’ in Flip-Flops and the Philippines’ Unlikely Love Affair with Basketball” is a book written by Bartholomew in which he writes about his earlier travel to the Philippines as a scholar in 2005 where he went deep inside the story behind the Filipinos love affair for the game of basketball. He spent three years in the country, where he got an all-access pass of the Alaska Aces in the PBA during their Fiesta Conference run in 2007, back then Tim Cone (the legendary coach of the Alaska franchise, is currently the head coach of the San Mig Coffee Mixers) was the head coach. The Aces were led by Willie Miller and import Rosell Ellis. San Mig Coffee was known as Purefoods, Petron was still the San Miguel Beermen, the Tropang Texters were called as the Phone Pals. Rain or Shine was still known as Welcoat, and the Red Bull franchise was still relevant. It also shows his search for the history of the sport from the time of the American occupation of the archipelago to the golden years of Philippine basketball to it’s role during Martial Law with the introduction of the PBA to the time of the legendary imports like Billy Ray Bates and Norman Black until the Fil-Am/Fil-Sham controversy which was a issue in politics. Outside of the league, Bartholomew travels around the country to explore how lives of the Filipino people changed with basketball from stories of good basketball courts being built even in the most remote areas of the country to their lore of watching the sport whether it’s a simple barangay league or watching the PBA live at the venue or the NBA on television where he also stated that the country has a basketball-devoted cable channel in Basketball TV (BTV).

What touches me the most about Sir Rafe Bartholomew was he did took the time to learn the Filipino language, during the entire Pinoy Hoops documentary, he was speaking the language fluently, as he was talking to people throughout the course of the story. No wonder, people gave him a nice Filipino name in “Paeng Bartolome” and “Kuya Raphael”. He really wrote a great book in Pacific Rims and an excellent documentary in Pacific Rims. One cool thing about him, was during the course of watching the documentary as well a reading his book. He is a very approachable person on the web, as he was replying to my posts about him on Twitter which in turn for me is a great thing to experience.

As many people who watched the documentary said three episodes weren’t enough and I definitely agree with them. Even with that being said, I thank Sir Rafe as well as the National Geographic Channel in the Philippines for pulling off this wonderful treat for the Filipino audience. I really hope they can pull off another opportunity to shoot another documentary about Philippine basketball especially the country is back on the international stage as they qualified for the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup in Spain.

Someday, when he comes back for a book signing, I will definitely have him sign my copy of the book and take a picture with him.

Basketball will always have a special place in my heart and soul.

K-Smoove

San ka? Kampihan na!

Yesterday, I watched my first two PBA games at “The Big Dome”, the Smart Araneta Coliseum. I was already in the Cubao area since the afternoon since I was with my family who also bought some things there. So once the sun came down and minutes from tip-off. I went around the outside of the Big Dome and noticed some changes that have been happening. Gone was the old blue and yellow paint job on the outside. It was being painted white and glass was being installed on the exterior of the arena. Then at around 6pm, my friend from high school together with his little brother who had my tickets to the game arrived. Then we went inside The Big Dome for the double-header. It was also my first time watching a game at the Big Dome on Patron seats in the five times I’ve witnessed an event at the Smart Araneta Coliseum. Later, my friend’s classmate arrived at the Big Dome as he was also invited by my friend to watch the game.

Both games were a treat. The first game was between the Air21 Express and the GlobalPort Batang Pier. Well, it was an up and down ballgame with the Batang Pier dominating the first half. However, the Express would come alive in the second half with hot shooting from their import Michael Dunigan as well as their local playerslike KG Canaleta and Mike Cortez as they defeat the Batang Pier 87-72. Unfortunately, I was unable to take photos from these games because I had to save my camera’s battery for the Main Event of the night.

It was the best team in the PBA this conference Alaska Aces going up against the SanMig Coffee Mixers. Well the “man of the moment” was San Mig Coffee star James Yap who has been in the news, not because of his on-court brilliance but of something personal he’s going through. I won’t go further into the details in this blog entry, since we’re all about basketball in this entry. Anyway, from tip-off it was an up and down game between these two competitive teams. Neither team did not waver all game long as both teams traded baskets and tough defense in a slow-paced game where both teams run the triangle on almost every play. For James Yap, it was an off game for him and it had something to do with the fact his personal troubles are getting the better of him. Both imports Denzel Bowles of San Mig Coffee and Rob Dozier of Alaska had a great battle inside. Alaska’s star rookie Calvin Abueva had a monster game despite the jeers he got all game long by the strong San Mig Coffee Planet in attendance at the Big Dome. In the end game, we were witness to one of the most craziest sequences of basketball I have seen in my life. Well here‘s what happened. It was 84-83 with the Mixers leading the Aces. Calvin Abueva was fouled on his way to the basket thus giving him two free throwsand a chance to give Alaska the lead. He would miss his first free throw, then when he was about to attempt his second free throw. Both backcourt players of Alaska and San Mig Coffee were called for lane violation thus resulting in a jump-ball. The Aces won the tip with enough time to go for the win. Abueva droved to the basket and missed the shot, then the Aces got the rebound and sent it back to Cyrus Baguio who attempted a wide-open shot for three, but the shot missed at the buzzer and the Mixers would escape with the victory over the Aces.

 Photo ©Karl Carandang

It was a great experience to watch the PBA live for the first time at the venue, after the experience of watching college basketball (UAAP and NCAA). As a Petron Blaze Boosters fan, that Alaska loss put a smile on my face, as that gives them a windown to take the lead from the Aces after witnessing a tough overtime defeat against the Talk ‘n Text Tropang Texters on television the previous day. So I’ll thank my friend for the free Patron tickets to the games yesterday. This won’t be the last time I’ll watch a PBA game live.

PBA: San ka? Kampihan na!

K-Smoove

It’s been a while. A lot has happened since.

As the title of this blog entry states. It has been a long time since I last wrote an entry here, and a lot of things has happened since.

After the victory I had in the middle of July, I went back to work and focus on all the subjects I have right now. The feeling of victory gave me the boost and inspiration I needed as I

July has passed and now we’re in the month of August. Right now, we are smacked in the middle of the Preliminary Examinations. So I have been busy lately studying and preparing for the exams that will come starting tomorrow until Friday (with a break on Wednesday as it is a holiday at the university.) Apparently, we had two examinations that were finished last Friday. We still have 6 exams to finish.

Another thing that kept me busy from writing is the event we are preparing and going to execute soon. I know I played the role of a “leftist” since I showed my doubts and concerns about the concept. But now, I’m all in and ready to make this work. 3T5, we know this won’t be a smooth sail, but let’s enjoy the ride and we can put up a great event.


Also, I went for a new haircut during this stretch. Because I always believe, that it’s a new beginning in a new haircut. Sounds weird, but that’s my belief. I really pushed for a comeback this time and give out a strong commitment on my craft.

Photo ©Karl Carandang

But of course, despite of the busy schedule I had. I found time to do something for myself. As yesterday, I watched the game between UST and DLSU at the new Mall of Asia Arena. It was my second time watching a UAAP game live at the game venue, and my very first time inside the new arena which is similar to arenas that can be found in the United States on NBA games with the marquees on the sides, the state-of-the-art jumbotron on top and the deluxe suites between the lower box and the upper box sections of the arena.

 Photo ©Karl Carandang

The battle between UST and DLSU is very much anticipated as it was the battle of the Teng brothers. Jeric, UST’s 4th year gun-slinging veteran going up against his younger brother, rookie slasher Jeron of DLSU. The game was a treat for the people who watched the game at the arena, both teams battled with true grit and will. It was a up-and-down game with both teams trading baskets and runs. At the end of two quarters, UST was trailing DLSU 29-30.

Photo ©Karl Carandang

At halftime it was a great sight as the UST Yellow Jackets and Salinggawi Dance Troupe together with the DLSU Animo Squad put up a great halftime show as both cheering squads went together and did each others school cheers which showed that despite the intense battle. Both the Thomasian and Lasallian communities can co-exist in the spirit of sports.

Photo ©Karl Carandang

 

It was a tight battle in the 2nd half with UST dominating the 3rd quarter as Clark Bautista came alive nailing three pointers for UST. While DLSU made their comeback in the 4th quarter. And from their on it was a tight battle. After Aljon Mariano tied the game at 71. La Salle’s LA Revilla nailed a floater at the buzzer, and we thought La Salle won the game. But once the replay was shown, the ball was still in his hands when the buzzer sounded. The basket was waived off and the game goes into overtime. The first overtime game of the season.

 

Photo ©Karl Carandang

 

But one overtime did not settle the contest, As the score went dead even at 80 at the end of the first overtime. So the game went into double overtime. La Salle went up by 2 on a L.A. Revilla jumper. But Aljon Mariano responded with 2 baskets, on a drive to tie the game with 51 seconds left in the game and a jumper with 7 seconds to put UST up 84-82. La Salle had their chances to tie/win the game, first was Yutien Andrada who tried to tie the game with a hook but his shot got blocked by Karim Abdul. La Salle had 0.6 seconds on the clock. L.A. Revilla tried to save La Salle with a flinging three point shot, but came up short as UST beats DLSU in double overtime 84-82.

 Photo ©Karl Carandang

 

This is one of the greatest basketball games I have ever witnessed. Both teams played their hearts out. The crowd from both schools were electric and very supportive. But in the end, the UST Growling Tigers survived with a impressive victory. Kudos to the DLSU Green Archers they had a lot of heart in this game. Talk about the ever famous Ateneo-La Salle rivalry. Watching a UST-La Salle game is a great experience to say the least. It makes me wanna watch their meeting in the 2nd round live again.

 

Now I’m 1-1 on the games I watched live at the game venues. The first game was last season when UST lost to Ateneo in a blowout in their 2nd meeting in UAAP Season 74 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

 

Aside from the UAAP action, I’m also pumped up about the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. Unfortunately, It’s been a tough ride for our athletes as 8 out of the 11 Filipino athletes at the Olympics have been knocked out of competition. Mark Anthony Barriga our lone boxer at the Olympics and our best chance at winning a medal recently suffered a tough 1 point defeat against Kazakh boxer Birzhan Zhakypov.  

Aside from the Filipino athletes, Olympic basketball has been a great sight as we have an intense competition there. Don’t expect a smooth sail for Team USA on winning the gold medal this year as they have tough international competitors, the most notable nations are Spain, Argentina and Russia who can challenge the Americans for the gold medal. And also, in this Olympics. American swimmer Michael Phelps has won the distinction as the “greatest Olympian of all-time” by winning 22 medals at the Olympics (18 of them are gold medals) *as of August 5, 2012.

Another thing I’m pumped about is Game 7 of the PBA Governors Cup Finals between the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters and the B-Meg Llamados today. Will the dream season of the Elasto Painters come into fruition? or will the drive of the Llamados give them a 2nd trophy for this season? That we will find out today starting at 5pm at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Like I said, this blog entry is going to be long. Because, I won’t be back until the examinations are done at the end of the coming week. Until then, enjoy the ride and I’ll be back soon.

 

Let’s Go and Bring it all on the line.

K-Smoove

Sport Junkie Sunday: A heartbreaker. I got a quadruple-whammy on the last day of summer.

Today was a great day for sports for we had great sporting events today. Unfortunately for me. It was a heartbreaking one. Full of defeats.

First it was the Boston Celtics and the Miami Heat in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals  for the right to face the Oklahoma City Thunder in the NBA Finals. The Celtics fought valiantly, but they just came up short as the Heat won the game and the series which sent heartbreak to a lot of Celtics fans including myself and brought joy to the entire Heat Nation. That game could also be the end of the Big 3 era for the Celtics.

Then it was our “Pambansang Kamao” Manny Pacquiao defended his WBO Welterweight Title against Timothy “Desert Storm” Bradley. Pacquiao clearly dominated the match. Unfortunately, he also lost by split decision as the judges scores 115-113, 113-115, 113-115 which broke the hearts of many Filipinos including myself and brought out the jeers from those who watched the match in Las Vegas and around the world. Knowing the fact, he dominated the match.

Finally, it was the Shakey’s V-League Finals Game 3 between the UST Tigresses and the Ateneo Lady Eagles. UST went down 0 sets to 2, but fought back valiantly and gained the next 2 sets to send the game to a deciding 5th set. But their efforts came up short as the Lady Eagles won the set 15-13 on their way to the championship.

So yes. This day was full of heartbreak for me. I know there are a lot of other sporting events to see like Petron going up against Ginebra in the PBA Governor’s Cup (I’m rooting for Petron). In tennis, Novak Djokovic going up against Rafael Nadal and the 2012 Canadian Grand Prix in Formula 1 with Sebastian Vettel in pole position (I’m rooting for McLaren, Lewis and Jenson).

Despite these great sporting events to see. My heart sank at a all-time low. Plus one other thing outside of sports that sank my heart. It could take me a long time to get my mojo back. Especially, these all happened on the last day of my summer. It’s a tough pill to swallow for me. I believe when the right time comes. I’ll be back in my old cheerful self.

So I give my kudos to the Boston Celtics that despite the criticism stacked against them, they fought with resiliency and got this far deep in the playoffs. To Manny Pacquiao who despite losing in an upset, he’s a great sport, and I can’t wait for their rematch and I hope this fight comes clean, and to the UST Tigresses who never gave up despite the hole they got in early in the match.

My first day of classes is tomorrow as is with my PEEPS at CTHM, I don’t know if I’ll be fine when I come along, but hey I can’t wait to see my PEEPS there, and I got to stay focused for I’m hoping to bounce back for myself after a mixed last semester.

My heart sank BIG. But get ready for the “Return of the Comeback. For Real.”
K-Smoove

One of the greatest games in Philippine basketball history. B-Meg defeats Talk ‘n Text in Game 7 to win Commissioner’s Cup.

B-Meg Llamados celebrate their Commissioner’s Cup victory.

Last night, I was at home watching Game 7 of the PBA Commissioner’s Cup Finals between two heavyweight teams, the B-Meg Llamados and the Talk ‘n Text Tropang Texters. After 6 games of a tightly contested series, it all came down to this one final showdown between these two talented teams. I was rooting for the Llamados to win the title.

The contest was tightly contested as both teams fought over for control of the game. B-Meg came out of the gates early led by their trio of import Denzel Bowles, James Yap and Peter June Simon, but Talk ‘n Text came roaring back led by Jimmy Alapag, Jayson Castro, import Donnell Harvey and their deep cast of players as they took control of the game right down to the 4th quarter. Unfortunately for Talk ‘n Text in the 4th, the lose key players along the way like three-point marksman Ranidel de Ocampo to cramps, defensive dynamo Ryan Reyes who has been successful in hounding James Yap defensively to a sore left knee, import Donnell Harvey to fouls and even Jimmy Alapag to cramps. B-Meg took advantage of the situation made a late surge that cut the Talk ‘n Text lead to 2 points at 74-76. They had possession with 13 seconds left in the game. James Yap missed a three pointer, but got the ball back and made a pass to Denzel Bowles who missed the lay-up at the buzzer.

After the play I thought that the game was over and Talk ‘n Text had won the title, but a twist of fate came along as the referees called a foul on Kelly Williams on the Bowles lay-up. So Bowles came down to the line with the team’s fortunes hanging by the palm of his hands and took two free throws under pressure which he sinks to tie the game at 76. Talk ‘n Text had 1.2 seconds to work with, but they have no timeouts as Jayson Castro went for a full-court heave that went offline.

Well, as luck turned out we’re going to overtime.

In overtime, Bowles took over, the Best Import of the Conference led the Llamados scoring 11 of the Llamados 14 points in overtime as the Tropang Texters had no answers against Bowles after Talk ‘n Text import Harvey fouled out in the 4th and eventually their other big man Ali Peek fouled out in overtime. Bowles finished with an impressive statline 39 points, 21 rebounds and 3 blocks. A double-double for the B-Meg import.

The final score: B-Meg Llamados 90-84 Talk ‘n Text Tropang Texters

It was an emotional win for the Llamados as seen on the highlights, the entire team from the players like Bowles who was emotional after sinking the two clutch free throws that sent the game into overtime to coach Tim Cone and his assistant coaches, to team manager Alvin “The Captain” Patrimonio who had led the franchise to victories as a player when the team was called Purefoods, and to the entire B-Meg Planet present at the Smart Araneta Coliseum and those watching on television around the Philippines in which coach Cone quotes that he never experienced a fan base that gave their wholehearted love and support to the team.

James Yap was crowned the Finals MVP. Yap finished with 12 points in Game 7. Peter June Simon who struggled in the last 3 games came alive and added 14 points. While point guard Josh Urbiztondo added 12 points.

You’ve got to give credit to the Tropang Texters who were resilient up to the final moments and kept on fighting despite losing players during the course of the game. Jimmy Alapag led the Tropang Texters with 29 points. Import Donnell Harvey scored 16 before fouling out in the 4th quarter. Larry Fonacier scored 11. Ali Peek scored 10 before fouling out in overtime. Also give credit to Jayson Castro and the rest of the Talk ‘n Text team led by coach Chot Reyes, they put on a thriller of a series.

This game could be mentioned as one of the greatest games in Philippine basketball history. Words can describe this game: emotional, thrilling, all-out, resilient, loud, and many words to describe this game. Everything in a Game 7 you can ask for were on display in this great game between these two teams.


Well, I can say that it is one of the greatest games that I have witnessed in my entire life. I myself want to watch replays of this game for this was a epic showdown for the ages.

Once again, Congratulations to the B-Meg Llamados for winning the 2012 PBA Commissioner’s Cup. A well deserved victory.

K-Smoove

Me and my basketball. We take it all the way.

Photo ©Karl Carandang

It is no secret that I love playing and watching basketball, as seen on my NBA Daily Blog where I blog about the NBA games that have happened since I “resurrected” my blog a few days, and the fact the Philippines is still a basketball nation even with the rise of other sports like football, rugby and tennis, as well as sports with a long presence in the Philippines like boxing, billiards, volleyball and taekwondo. Basketball has been a part of my life since 2002 when the NBA came upon our television sets. Even up to today, basketball is one of the most special things I cherish in my entire life.

My first favorite NBA team was the Utah Jazz where my first favorite NBA player Karl Malone was playing. At first, I was playing basketball on video games on the PlayStation and so on, but a few months later, I got my hands on a basketball for the first time and life has never been the same from there.

I grew in love more with basketball when the Houston Rockets drafted Yao Ming out of China to become the first Asian player to be drafted #1 overall in the NBA Draft and from there, I have become a proud fan of the Rockets with Yao as my new favorite player. I also liked other Rockets players that have played over the years like Steve Francis, Cuttino Mobley, Tracy McGrady, Bob Sura, Shane Battier, Chuck Hayes, Rafer Alston, Dikembe Mutombo, Aaron Brooks, Luis Scola, Carl Landry, Kyle Lowry, Ron Artest (now known as Metta World Peace), Von Wafer, Kevin Martin, Chase Budinger, Courtney Lee, Goran Dragic, and many other Rockets players since I’ve watched with the NBA on TV. Over the years when I grew up, that was then I found out about the history of the Rockets with the likes of Hakeem Olajuwon, Clyde Drexler, Robert Horry, Kenny Smith, Sam Cassell, Mario Elie, Vernon Maxwell, Otis Thorpe, Ralph Sampson, Rudy Tomjanovich, Calvin Murphy, Charles Barkley and many other Rockets greats. That was then when I found out they were the NBA Champions in 1994 and 1995, and right now I hope that the Rockets can win a NBA title in my lifetime, because the time they won NBA titles, I was still a baby.

Aside from the Rockets and all the great players, I came to like other players like Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Wilt Chamberlain, Isiah Thomas, Shaquille O’Neal, Reggie Miller, Allen Iverson, Kevin Garnett, Derrick Rose, Blake Griffin, Kevin Durant, Dirk Nowitzki, Andre Iguodala, Josh Smith, Joe Johnson, Jeremy Lin, Kevin Love, Carmelo Anthony, Chris Paul, Dwight Howard, Kevin Durant, Kobe Bryant and many other players from different eras and the present. I also like other teams like the Atlanta Hawks, Orlando Magic, Oklahoma City Thunder, Dallas Mavericks, Boston Celtics, and New York Knicks.

Aside from the NBA, I also keep track of basketball played here in the Philippines from the Philippine Basketball Association to the college game UAAP and NCAA (Philippines). Some PBA teams I like are the Petron Blaze Boosters, Rain or Shine Elasto Painters, B-Meg Llamados, Alaska Aces, and the Powerade Tigers. Also, I am a supporter of the Philippine national team in basketball and the AirAsia Philippine Patriots of the ASEAN Basketball League.

I admit that before I came to study at the University of Santo Tomas, my favorite college team were the Ateneo Blue Eagles, but now that I am a full-pledged Thomasian, I wholeheartedly support the UST Growling Tigers, and I hope in my time as a student, they win the UAAP basketball tournament. I also like the Letran Knights and the San Sebastian Golden Stags of the NCAA (Philippines).

I also take a look at in international basketball contests like the FIBA tournaments in each region and the Euroleague.

I also come in to play video games, The first basketball video game I played was NBA Shootout 2000. Then it was followed the NBA Live series from 2003 to 2007, and now I’m a huge fan of the NBA 2K series since 2008, especially after the improvements and innovations they put up in every issue of the game that had been launched since then.

Whenever I play basketball myself, I’m a left-handed shooter, as I write with my left hand and favor more of my left hand than my right. I like to take three-pointers and mid-range shots, but sometimes I go for a lay-up or close-range shot. I’m trying my best to improve my passing, dribbling, and ball-handling game which is a constant improvement year after year. I can be a underrated on-ball defender. I enjoy playing basketball for the fun of it all, together with my friends at the basketball court. Whether it is free time during my PE class in high school and in games for one semester at the university, to playing at the Intramurals in high school or the CTHM Sportsfest, or to playing in the subdivision with my friends.

Basketball has been a part of my life for already a decade, basketball has shaped my life to the person I have become today. With basketball, I made great time with my friends and gained new ones along the way, I had a lot of moments of victory with jubilation, and also moments of defeat where I got to learn from my mistakes when playing. Basketball will continue to be a part of my life even after I’m done playing on the court and continue the rest of the day. Just like the Nike campaign “Basketball never stops.”

“Basketball is in my blood. It is my obligation to try.” – Hakeem Olajuwon

“I have one thing to say to those non-believers, don’t ever underestimate the heart of a champion!” – Rudy Tomjanovich

“Talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence wins championships.” – Michael Jordan

A basketball team is like the five fingers on your hand. If you can get them all together, you have a fist. That’s how I want you to play. – Mike Kryzewski

K-Smoove