I respect men brave enough to embrace the perilous profession of coaching. The Head Coaching job is a throne of vanity and valor. In an instant, a regular Joe, once he leads a basketball team to victory, becomes General Douglas McArthur, Moses, and Messiah all at once. Based on the final score or a team’s winning record, the Head Coach morphs into the following: a) The paragon of leadership b) A man to save the people from the throngs of bondage c) The chosen one who holds the key to eternal salvation.

Yet in the same week, upon slipping into bitter defeat, the same Head Coach is suddenly crucified. The assembly, who just days ago venerate him like he was Gandhi reincarnate, returns to vilify him like he was Mussolini, Hitler and Sanjaya rolled into one. Admirers become aghast while devotees become doubters all in the speed of a basketball minute. Read the rest of this entry »

During our broadcast of the Lakers-Magic series in Orlando, I once mentioned the significant number of Laker fans inside the Amway Arena. By simply spotting the gold and purple shirts scattered in the venue, one can conclude that Laker Love is alive in downtown Orlando. I added that surely thousands more cheer for the Lakers back in the Philippines. In response, my broadcast partner the venerable “Dr. J” Andy Jao quipped, “Marami din kasi tayong mga kababayan na nakatira sa L.A. so there is a natural connection with the Lakers.”

With all due respect to Dr. J, I think Laker Love in the Filipino context is more than just a discussion on geography and mass immigration. Read the rest of this entry »

For the first time in my life I am taking Berroca twice everyday.

About three weeks ago, I went to Cebu for the weekend and as I was waiting in line to enter my plane, the girl in front of me sneezed. I never realized how scandalous sneezing could be as the people in line looked at the girl with much dismay. I myself am guilty. Thoughts about the consequences of that sneeze ran through my head . As I was going home from an Independence Day trip to my home province Tarlac, I got a text about a friend who tested positive for that flu they always seem to be mentioning in the papers, news, television and discussions. Pandemic? Flu breakout? A1H1? Swine Flu? Whatever it is, the threat is imminent. For the longest time, the swine flu was a reality that I pushed aside. Now, that people close to me are actually getting it, I can’t help but be paranoid and take the necessary precautions .

Yes, the flu is in the air and it is a madness that we are all susceptible to.However, Swine Flu or A1HI is not the only one up there as basketball madness is likewise taking center stage. This month has been a very busy month for all of us basketball and sports aficionados. The recently concluded NBA Finals is a testament to how crazy, exciting and unpredictable basketball could be. All hail the Kings as Kobe, Phil and company has once again reign supreme. However, the Lakers rise to the top wasn’t given on a silver platter. They won it amidst talks of King James finally taking stage but as we all found out, the Cavaliers fell short and it was all talk after all. Boston, my sentimental pick for this year, were not able to defend the championship, as age and nagging injuries doomed their campaign. No KG meant no championship.

A pleasant surprise was the Orlando Magic. This year’s runners up proved that a steady outside shooting along with a dominating big man in Dwight Howard is the real magic behind their successful campaign. Although, Dwight, Hedo, Rashard, Rafer and company fell short, the Magic’s gave us enough buzzer beaters and come from behinds to make these years playoffs a very exciting one. Adding spice to their run will be the unending debate of should or shouldn’t have they played Jameer Nelson over Rafer Alston. Whatever the answer, the fact remains that if they had won their two overtime loses, they might even be the Kings of this years NBA season.

But this year is all about the LA Lakers. Experience, teamwork, solid coaching from the zen master, and of course, Kobe Bryant won it for them. Denied by the Boston Celtics in last year’s finals, the Lakers would not be denied this year. They maintained the core of last year’s team and finding added support from healthy players in Ariza and Bynum. No matter how you look at it credit should really go to the Star of the team, Kobe Bryant. Kobe, gifted with immense talent is simply a true competitor, he clearly was the heart and soul of this championship team, proving to us that Kobe Bryant is a chip of the block of the Michael Jordan winning formula.

As the LA Lakers were marching to their championship, news of a vaccine for the Swine Flu came out. If it will be the answer to this flu breakout remains to be seen, but what we are sure of is that the LA Lakers found the right vaccine to counter last year’s lost to Boston. The vaccine is actually that particular disappointment. Kobe and company hurt by the lost, came in this season wounded, disappointed but hungrier and much wiser. Losing was enough motivation for them to go all out and struggle to win it all this year. All hail Kobe, all hail the Lakers.The playoffs are over but the basketball madness seems to be growing just like Swine Flu.

Today, the PBA will start its semifinals stage. My team, Ginebra will go up against the young and hungry Rain Or Shine, while the talented San Miguel faces giant killers, Burger King. If this is not enough, in a few weeks time college basketball will take off. Once again teams from the UAAP and NCAA will figure in the drama called college basketball. With all of these, I say, the madness is definitely in the air. That’s all for now, time to take my calamansi juice and eat my oranges.

(Los Angeles, CA) - Phil Jackson, when asked about his mind-bending motivational tactics, often echoes one of his favorite lines from a Rudyard Kipling poem about the rules of the jungle that, in essence, says, “The strength of the pack is the wolf and the strength of the wolf is the pack.” Fortunately for Jackson, the wolf wears #24 and the pack is headed for a championship party in Los Angeles.

The strength of the Lakers is Kobe. Kobe’s strength is the Lakers. Critics question this synergy partly because Kobe, at times, displays impatience and impunity when he works with individuals who are neither as talented nor driven as he is. The wolf gets testy with the pack. The pack, in turn, distances from the wolf. With any two-way relationship, like a business partnership for instance, the road is never obstacle-free. Ironically, Kobe’s stubbornness and legendary single-mindedness might have helped the Lakers grow from what felt like an insipid blind date in the first post-Shaq season to a winning give-and-take relationship in 2009.

As such, I don’t understand how Kobe’s greatness rests on his ability to win a championship on his own. Bill Russell has Bob Cousy. Magic Johnson has Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Michael Jordan has Scottie Pippen. Yet no one demands that Russell, Magic and Jordan win a title without assistance to validate their immortality. Great things are rarely achieved singlehandedly. Lennon wouldn’t be Lennon without McCartney. Bono wouldn’t be Bono without The Edge.

But as Kobe gets tantalizingly close to becoming, not just the next Jordan, but  the new Jordan, people threatened by the impending paradigm shift launch a preemptive strike and swiftly question Bryant’s ability to lead, win, score, share, love and hate. It is unfortunate that in the post-Jordan era, greatness comes with impossibly steep expectations. Suddenly, being great isn’t enough. One has to surpass the very notion of excelling in team sports. If Kobe wishes to be the new Jordan, throw him into the murderous gauntlet and make him prove his worth.

With all this pessimism and scrutiny thrown his way, what other recourse does the wolf have? He grinds his teeth. He abandons congeniality in favor of rancor. He loses the ability to smile in order to develop a scowl. Bryant’s 40 point outburst in Game 1 sends the message loud and clear: The wolf is out for blood so dare not impede his path. He elbows Jameer Nelson. He drags Dwight Howard into first row. He makes Courtney Lee, Mikael Pietrus and JJ Redick, Orlando’s designated Kobe stoppers, look like sheep offered for slaughter.

Compelled by Kobe’s ferocity, the pack responds. Pau Gasol unleashes a brilliant performance armed with finesse and force reminiscent of Kevin McHale. Lamar Odom, bad back and all, becomes the primary assassin off the bench. Derek Fisher nails two three-pointers in Game 4 that basically clinch the series and does it with a fiendish smile. Trevor Ariza uses quiet fury to steal, stab and slam the opposition in the most critical times.

The strength of the pack is the wolf. The strength of the wolf is the pack.

The strength of the Lakers is Kobe. Kobe’s strength is the Lakers.

And the wolf finally gets his NBA championship. MH 

(ORLANDO, Fla.) - People hurriedly fled the scene of the crime as if someone who ate burritos for brunch farted without warning. Just moments ago, Magic fans were in NBA Finals nirvana anticipating a series tied at game’s end. Deafening chants of “Beat L.A., Beat L.A.” reverberated across the state of Florida. NBA staff members in the Amway Arena started checking available hotel rooms in downtown LA since the series would surely head back to Staples regardless of what happens in Game 5. Orlando fans were about to embrace the shower of pixie dust at the final buzzer. Then all of a sudden, without polite forewarning, the stink bomb exploded forcing many Orlando fans to scamper for the exits.

All series long, experience was a discussion topic of choice. The Lakers were a more experienced team having been to the Finals just a year ago. Phil Jackson, who is beginning to look like Gandalf without the scruffy robe, is the more experienced coach. Kobe Bryant, compared to Dwight Howard, is the more experienced superstar (Kobe might have made more admirers and enemies in his 12-year career than Howard will in his lifetime). 

In the waning moments of Game 4, however, it was Derek Fisher’s edge in experience that delivered the knockout blow.Described by ABC anchorman Mike Breen as “The Grand Old Man of the Lakers Back-Court”, Fisher’s personal road to the Finals was paved with apparent mismatches and signs of aging. The 12-year veteran faced Olympian Deron Williams in the first round, speedster Aaron Brooks in the second round and clutch-triggerman Chauncey Billups in the Western Conference Finals. All throughout the playoffs, fans and foes alike have questioned Fisher’s ability to keep up with bigger, faster, more prominent point guards. Jackson, however, that stubborn and arrogant sage, stuck with the 34-year old Fisher and placed complete trust in his experience over everything else.

Seconds ticking down in regulation, Lakers down by three, their 2-1 series lead about to crumble, Fisher dribbles the ball on the right side of the floor just past the half-court line. In the early part of the decade, this would’ve been Robert Horry’s choice Laker moment of the season. Not tonight. Not this year. Not on this possession. Fisher moves in. He knows they need a three. He sees yet another doubter as Jameer Nelson inexplicably backpedals a few inches too far. Fisher takes it as an insult and a blessing at the same time. The Grand Old Man from Little Rock-Arkansas swiftly picks up his dribble and (to the horror of Nelson, Jeff Van Gundy and over 17,000 Magic fans) squares perfectly for the shot and, with the complete trust of the entire Laker organization, paints another NBA Playoffs masterpiece.

“This was greater than .04,” Fisher, referring to his unforgettable turnaround buzzer-beater made with just .04 seconds left against San Antonio in the 2004 Playoffs, told reporters after the game.  “Compared to the .04 shot, my shots tonight brought us much closer to our ultimate goal for this season.”

The day before Game 4, I caught Jackson and Fisher calmly conversing at the end of practice. Jackson parked his surgically altered hip in a courtside seat while Fisher sat on the nearby scorers’ table. It was a candid moment between a coach and his trusted court general.  Whether or not they talked strategy for Game 4 or what to order from room service that night was irrelevant.  It was a moment of shared confidence – something Stan Van Gundy can only dream of having with the cantankerous Rafer Alston, a less-than-100-percent Jameer Nelson or hopelessly forgotten Anthony Johnson.

All over the sunny city of Orlando, I see huge banners on buildings that say GO MAGIC in big bold capital letters. It’s a battle-cry that seems all too fragile with the Lakers owning a 3-1 series lead.  The city government might as well change GO MAGIC to GO FISH just to remind its home team that it takes more than sweet moves, streaky shooting and super strength to close out a Finals game. MH