Mr. John Paul Chua
The Ripples Publications
Last September 2018, I had the rare opportunity to study in Xiamen, China as a scholar for one academic school year. During that time, my teacher asked me which sport is most popular in the Philippines. I answered her without a moment’s hesitation: “Basketball.”
As most Filipinos will attest, a game of basketball has no equal. Everywhere you look, there are makeshifts basketball courts that surround the plazas and towns. The game is similar to a religion: you witness people dancing, shouting, praying, and crying. Trust me, ask the next guy who lost his bet in an NBA Finals.
For some, it is an unbridled passion where each game is filled with drama, tension, precision, execution, and at times, heated argument. The constant sound of the ball dribbling as well as the swish one makes when making that perfect shot is without a doubt the sweetest sound a player – or an avid fan – can hear.
My love for basketball came at an early age. I was first exposed to it when my father would watch replays of televised games every Sunday afternoon through Betamax. His favorite player, Earvin “Magic” Johnson, was a six-foot-nine anomaly of a point guard of the famed Los Angeles Lakers’ Showtime. Their rival was none other than the Leprechaun inspired Boston Celtics team led by a shooter from Frenchlick, Indiana who goes by the name Larry Joe Bird.
Just like in every household, I wanted to prove to my father that I picked a better team. We had our own friendly rivalry in our home by supporting the team and players we idolized. This created a special bond between my father and me.
When I reached grade school, the world was treated to a special basketball team known as the Dream Team – and what better way to introduce this juggernaut team than in the Olympics. The team was led by various NBA superstars and hall of fame locks such as Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, and Larry Bird (considered that time the holy trinity of basketball) with the exception of college sensation Christian Laettner. The team was so dominant that their legendary head coach, the late Chuck Daly, did not call a single time-out when the game was played. The result of each competition was so lopsided it was like watching a college varsity team playing against a grade school peewee team.
My fascination towards basketball strengthened during my high school days when I became a rebel of the norm. The ever popular Chicago Bulls was spearheaded by his Royal Airness, Michael Jordan, and his sidekick Scottie Pippen. This dynamic duo was so efficient in playing defense and offense that they were arguably touted as the best 1-2 punch in basketball history. My classmates supported this team as if they were their family. I chose to pick on teams that can beat the so-called Unbeata-Bulls.
Moving forward to my college days, I followed an athlete’s progress in the playing years of Wake Forest. He was a once-in-a-decade player who was going to impact the league. Tim Duncan was chosen as the first over-all pick by the San Antonio Spurs in the 1997 NBA Draft as they tanked their way to the lottery the previous year. Every scout and fan knew he was going to change the fate of this team especially when he was paired with an aging superstar, David “The Admiral” Robinson. True enough, Tim was able to do that in a span of two decades.
Countless battles raged on the succeeding years as the likes of Kobe “Black Mamba” Bryant, Shaquille O’Neal, and Tim Duncan emerged as heroes and conquerors. The game was changing and got to a point that it was so diversified when the Houston Rockets decided to take on Shanghai Sharks’ Yao Ming as their centerpiece with the 2002 NBA Draft. With that started a new revolution in basketball history: the international flavor. Players like the Spain’s Pau Gasol, Canada’s Steve Nash, France’s Tony Parker, Argentina’s Emmanuel “Manu” Ginobili, and Germany’s Dirk Nowitzki, to name a few, started to flourish in a game meant for Americans.
The year 2003 introduced the world to high school sensation Lebron James. When he was a Junior high school player, many believed he was the future the NBA can build upon. Experts were saying he can start in an NBA team, a statement which drew the ire of some veterans who saw it as a slap in their face. When the basketball gods (actually, it was Commissioner David Stern) made sure that the Cleveland Cavaliers had the rights for that year’s coveted number one pick, who better player to draft than your own native son?
With new superstars coming in annually, the league was taken aback when Lebron decided to join the Miami Heat as part of his decision. With Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, the trio became a super team that years later, another super team was formed when the Golden State Warriors got the services of Kevin Durant, a former Rookie of the Year and Most Valuable Player to play along with the Splash Brothers’ Steph Curry and Klay Thompson.
2020 was going to be the year when Kobe Bryant, Tim Duncan and Kevin Garnett would have been officially inducted in the Hall of Fame. The tragic passing of the Black Mamba last January averted what would have been a momentous event in sport and to add insult to injury, the world was hit with a new threat: Covid-19.
For more than a month, fans and aficionados were not allowed to play the sports they had grown to love. They only resorted to watching replays of NBA games. As the days went by, some were brave (or foolish) enough to play basketball in their own backyard. With the new normal coming in, people were once again given new hope as NBA league commissioner Adam Silver decided to continue the current NBA season.
It is true that basketball affected several people, much more the Filipinos. From our own students, faculty and staff who lived and breathed basketball, and for the love of the game, there is nothing more to say but “play on”.
graphic by Katrina Angela Pangilinan & Veronica Jazmin Cuachon