Patriotism in PH basketball

After 61 years, the Philippines is back as king of Asian basketball.

A decisive 70-60 victory over Jordan in the finals of the Asian Games men’s basketball event in Hangzhou, China, allowed the country to reclaim the crown it last won in 1962 in Jakarta.

The dramatic 77-76 victory over regional rival China in the semifinals—one that put the country back in the Asian hoop finals for the first time in 33 years—polished that gold medal to a more lustrous shine.

And coming from the rubble of a failed Fiba World Cup bid here at the heart of basketball’s kingdom, the Asian Games triumph provided a treasure trove of gains valuable for a program in need of a thorough repair job.

Among the insights: An efficient preparation can sub for a lengthy one.

With little time to prep the team, a little over two weeks, national coach Tim Cone laid the foundational work right away so the players could understand the basics of what he wanted them to do.

And he never let the team lose sight of its goal: “[The gold medal is] always gonna be our goal. We’re not going out there thinking silver or bronze, we’re gonna go out there looking for a gold.”

And when every problem arose—and there was that big one when it came to last-minute roster changes, Cone and the coaching staff made sure to put out fires one by one.

“Our focus is our process. It’s what we did this practice, it’s what we do next practice,” Cone said. “For me, personally, how do I put out all the fires that’s coming out? One fire at a time.”

In the tournament, Cone and his coaches focused the team on “landing planes one by one” instead of planning for the entire tournament.

Those are the lessons that the reeling Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP) would be wise to apply in straightening out the program’s future path.

But there is one important learning that must not be reduced to a footnote, a lesson that should not be lost in the whirlwind celebration of tears and cheers.

Call it the Chris Newsome Lesson—and it has nothing to do with techniques or processes.

In the Netflix documentary “Beckham,” there is a segment in the first episode that talks about how the English football star David Beckham had wanted more than anything in the world—to play for the national squad.

While that type of athletic patriotism is common in football, it is a rare commodity in basketball.

And that’s not just in the Philippines. The NBA is a classic example, with top pros constantly peeing beg-offs every time the national team is being formed and rallying for redemption only after losses by Team USA on the international front—most of the time, they look for redemption only in the Olympics.

In the Philippines, the problem is not as deeply rooted. But it is there.

Sure, you’ll get the usual “I’m always ready for when the national team calls” or “It’s every basketball player’s dream to play for the national team.” Ask any PR practitioner and they’ll tell you how that statement, while having the same perceived meaning, is starkly different from “I hope I get picked for the national team.”

Chris Newsome represents the latter.

When he was cut, Newsome spoke of wanting “to be in that 12.”

And instead of packing his bags, he hung around with the team in the World Cup, rebounding bricks and assisting teammates in putting shots up during warmups—something you’d expect of a ball boy, not a 33-year-old PBA star.

“I try to help the guys warm up, I try to be there mentally and also vocally and tell them what I see. For us to be something special, everybody [has] gotta do their share and the Filipino word for that is bayanihan,” Newsome said.“Everybody has to do their part. Even though I’m not on the court, I can still help in little ways.”

Newsome made the Asian Games roster and played a key role, especially on the defensive end, in the gold medal match. “Everyone knows I wanted to be part of that Fiba lineup … It hurts to get cut but I always kept telling myself that if this isn’t my time, then it’s somebody else’s. God had better plans for me and right now is the fruition of when God had other plans.”

The SBP needs to cultivate that behavior, that pride and inextinguishable desire to have one’s name sewn on the back of jerseys that read PILIPINAS in front.

If the national federation could create a pool of Chris Newsomes, imagine how much sea of difference that would make for the country’s basketball program.