BE a jack of all trades, but also be a master of at least one.
That’s probably how Aldin Ayo can sum up what he learned after a handful of memorable coaching battles with Tab Baldwin.
While Baldwin has ran circles around the competition at the college level after leading Ateneo to a UAAP three-peat from 2017 to 2019, Ayo’s teams proved to be the biggest threat to the American-Kiwi mentor and the Blue Eagles.
[See Dribble drive or Euro ball? Ayo responds]
In a battle between first-year UAAP coaches, Ayo even got the better of Baldwin by leading La Salle to the 2016 UAAP title in a sweep of archrival Ateneo in the best-of-three series.
Three years later, Ateneo stamped its class on the way to a rare 14-game sweep to cap its third straight championship, but the sweep almost didn’t happen had the Blue Eagles not escaped with a 71-70 win against Ayo and University of Santo Tomas in the eliminations.
"I just have so much respect for him and the way he does his job. You know, he's a blessing for Philippine basketball and for the UAAP," Baldwin said after that hard-earned win in 2019.
Ayo’s Tigers still played good enough to face the Blue Eagles in the finals before Ateneo completed its sweep.
Still, Ayo cherishes those battles with Baldwin.
Aldin Ayo on lessons from Tab Baldwin
“When we were coaching against each other, ang dami ko natutunan sa kanya eh,” Ayo said on SPIN Zoom In on Monday. “May mga ginagawa siyang bago. And siya rin actually, nung nag-uusap kami, may nakikita rin siyang bago sa akin.”
But Ayo insisted it’s not how many tactics you pick up and apply to your own system, but what you can perfect from what you learned.
“Mastery,” Ayo said when asked what he learned from Baldwin. “Pag yung coach kasi nagma-mature na, konti na lang ang ginagawa ng mga yan. And yung konti na yun, yun na ang pinaka-effective.”
“Ang usual na nagiging problema rin ng mga young coaches, dahil bata sila, ang dami nilang gustong gawin. Sa sobrang dami nilang gustong gawin, wala silang nape-perfect.”
“But these coaches, yung mga mature, eto na yung konti na lang, pero yun na yun. Yun ang kabuuhan. Perfect na,” he added of Baldwin. “Mas nakakatakot yung mga ganyang kalaban na konti na lang ang ginagawa.”
Ayo may admire Baldwin’s coaching, but the American-New Zealander coach jumping from one overseas job to the next is something the new Converge coach does not want to emulate.
“These coaches are really good, but in terms of yung career nila, I don’t want to be like them na they move from one place to another, which for them nag-eenjoy sila, kaya sila ganun eh kasi sought-after sila. Ako, ang iniisip ko kasi I just want to settle down sa isang lugar eh,” Ayo said with a chuckle.
“And okay na dito. Pero sila, because of the level of coaching na they have, yung demand sa kanila, paikot-ikot sila, sabi ko parang hindi ko ata kaya yun. Naikot na nila ang buong mundo eh,” he added.
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