It was quite the Manila trip for NBA star Jeremy Sochan, who capped his visit by watching the finals of the NBA Rising Stars Invitational Philippine Qualifiers at the historic Big Dome.
San Antonio Spurs forward Jeremy Sochan certainly made the most of his visit to Manila, soaking in the sights and learning more about the basketball culture here. And what better way for him to wrap up his trip than by paying a visit to the mecca of basketball in Manila and watching the game’s future stars showcase their skills?
Sochan was on hand Saturday at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum to witness National University Nazareth School (NUNS) sweep both the boys and girls divisions of the NBA Rising Stars Invitational Philippine Qualifiers and earn the right to represent the Philippines in the NBA Rising Stars Invitational set June 25-29 in Singapore where they will face off against 10 other top Asian high school teams.
For Sochan, it was the culmination of a week-long trip that saw him immerse himself in the local basketball scene.
“This past week has been great,” he said. “Watching basketball is something I love. Whatever age group it is, whatever kind of competition, it’s basketball at the end of the day.
“One thing I found out during this trip is just the passion and the love and the heart that everyone has here for basketball. Whether you’re playing, coaching, watching, spectating, there’s so much passion, and I just truly respect that. The kids playing out there, they just play hard, play fast, play on both sides of the court.
“They’re respecting the basketball coach, which is the most important thing. I just saw a lot of joy, and it was a great few days here.”
Jeremy Sochan came away impressed with the talent he saw on the court, not just from the NUNS teams but also from La Salle Antipolo in the girls division and UST in the boys division.
“I see a lot of young, talented, hard workers, and I think that’s the most important thing. Talent doesn’t always take you everywhere. You have to have that mentality of working hard, being just a dog.”
“I see a lot of that. I see a lot of heart and passion, so it’s been good for me to see this.”
While here, Sochan made it a point to keep updated on the NBA Playoffs, although he admitted he found it a little weird to be watching live NBA games in the morning.
“Yeah, it’s a little different. Growing up in Europe, you’d always watch games at like 12 am, 2 am, 3 am. But here it’s at like 7 am and 9 am, so it was a little interesting. It was tough at times because that’s when I was working out, so I had to adjust to it, but yeah, it’s pretty fun.”
Here’s hoping Jeremy Sochan returns to the Philippines soon.
Bullpups headed to Singapore
For the NUNS teams, victory at the NBA Rising Stars Invitational Philippine Qualifiers was sweet redemption after both teams lost in the recent UAAP Season 87 high school basketball finals.
“Natutuwa kami na kahit pa paano, after that loss,” Camilla Escoto, NUNS Lady Bullpups head coach, said. “Ngayon, they have the reason to smile and to be happy again and to play basketball again na nag-enjoy.”
Added her boys’ team counterpart, Kevin De Castro:
“Yung finals namin ng UAAP, medyo hindi nag-favor sa amin. Pero sinabi ko sa kanila, something to look forward. So, next tournament, let’s see. Let’s get better. We’ll compete. Then, let’s see what the result is. Sobrang happy din dahil natalo kami ng UST sa finals. Sobrang happy dahil nakabawi po kami this tournament.”
Now, both teams will begin their preparations for Singapore, where they will be representing not just their school but their country as well in the first-ever NBA Rising Stars Invitational.
“Yung privilege na natanggap namin right from the start na na-invite kami sa lahat ng teams, high school teams, ang daming schools,” De Castro said. “And luckily, thank God, na kami yung mag-re-represent as team Philippines sa Singapore. So, I’ll take it, yung challenge.
“Ang gusto ko lang sa kanila, magandang challenge para sa amin. Kasi, yun nga, international teams. Kung baga, one step closer kami kung ano yung ultimate goal namin next season. So, yun, mas malalakas kalaban, mas magandang challenges para sa team namin. So, let’s see. Sana, ma-favor sa amin coming to Singapore.”
Added Shaun Lucido, the NUNS Bullpups guard who was named Gatorade Boys’ MVP:
“Siguro, yung pressure is always there talaga,” said Lucido, who scored 25 points in their 101-75 win over UST. “Siyempre, yung mindset na lang namin is we will enjoy the game and we will take this opportunity na lang.”
Escoto is also looking forward to the challenge.
“Alam naman natin yung larong Pilipino, hindi yan nagba-backdown sa kahit anong tournament na international, kahit medyo mas maliliit tayo. So, we’ll just do our best. We’ll give our best effort.
“There’s always pressure kasi if you have that kind of pressure, privilege siya. So, we’ll just take it by preparing very well. We still have a month and two weeks to prepare. We’ll use that. Gagamitin namin talaga yan to prepare.
“We won’t take this opportunity for granted kasi maybe once in a lifetime. So, we’ll really prepare there going to the tournament.”
Zuzzane Singson, the 14-year-old NUNS Lady Bullpups center who wowed the crowd with 14 points and 18 rebounds and was later named Gatorade Girls MVP, is just thrilled to eb going to Singapore with the boys’ team.
“Sobrang saya namin dahil pati yung NUNS boys’ [team] ay makakasama namin sa Singapore. Sobrang saya din namin, lalo na kaming mga bago sa NUNS, dahil first time namin makakapunta sa ibang bansa.”
Banner Images from NBA Philippines.