by Andrew Lim
Straight to the point: what the heck are we doing in a sport that favors height? The basket is 10 ft high and can be accessed vertically or diagonally, both conferring advantage on the bigger team. Skills, speed, stamina play a role but all things equal, the taller one prevails.
Filipino fans are quick to go into the "intangibles", often citing "puso" (heart), "diskarte", "ma-abilidad" (skilled), "ma-paraan"(resilient and resourceful) as if we are the only ones with these. You think Team USA or Spain doesn't possess these?
Fans point to the evolution of our Gilas players- they're now taller, faster, more athletic (partly due to mixed marriages) but do you think other teams don't evolve as well?
We've spent blood and fortune on a sport that yields very little success in the international arena. It sure feels a nation banging its head on the wall repeatedly and hoping for a different result each time. Isn't that insane?
Perhaps it's what Manny Pangilinan cited as justification: "It's the sport we love." And you can't deny the sport is commercially viable locally- UAAP, PBA, MPBL, etc.
The only realistic goal? Dominance in SE Asia, consistent threat in Asia. That's it. Forget international. Hope springs eternal, but hope is not a strategy.
The bigger picture? Our obsession over basketball belies the same cultural trait that bedevils our hellish traffic transportation system: we are such poor planners and poor learners. All the previous generations, previous administrations are to blame and not a single one of them was smart and brave enough to learn from the past and plot a different course.
Mark my words: several years from now, perhaps Manny Pangilinan's grand children or Kai Sotto's children will be involved in Philippine basketball. The results will be the same. Maybe a trip to the second round or a win or two. Are we happy with that?
Think of the potential success we could have had if we were smart and strategic enough to choose the sport that fits our genetics better.
This conversation is what we should be having, not the Thom Browne suits Chot Reyes wears to the games. Who cares about that?
Bing Image Creator: Gilas Pilipinas Losing
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