AT just 16 years of age, Dumaguete-born Prince Cariño has slowly been carving quite the path in basketball.
The 6-foot-7 big man has already attained both local and international accolades, from a UAAP Season 88 juniors basketball title with FEU-Diliman to a gold medal in the FIBA U18 Asia Cup SEABA Qualifiers.
Now, he's ready to take it up a notch after getting invited to the NBA and FIBA’s reimagined Basketball Without Borders Next Up Camp in Istanbul, Turkey from August 26-29.
Speaking to SPIN.ph, Cariño couldn't hide his excitement.
“It’s a big honor po talaga na mabigyan ng chance na makalaro at maipakita yung talent ko sa NBA Basketball Without Borders," he said.
“Sobrang grateful din po ako kasi sa dami ng elite high school players from all over the world, isa ako sa mga na-invite.”
The Basketball Without Borders Camp is no stranger to hosting young Filipino studs in its program, with some of the most notable being the likes of Kai Sotto, Andy Gemao, Forthsky Padrigao, and even our nations top women like Kacey Dela Rosa.
Eager to be the latest in a long line of promising Filipino talent, Cariño hopes to be nothing less of a sponge during the camp, soaking in every bit of guidance he can from top-tier NBA coaches and talents.
“Malaking bagay po ito para sa akin kasi nandito na yung mga best of the best. Sana isa din ito sa magiging stepping stone ko going to the next level of my career.”
A taste of the big leagues
From an early age, FEU-D’s promising forward has slowly been proving himself as one of the brightest young standouts to watch out for, not only signing with the Wasserman Group—who also handles Sotto—but also trying his mettle at the 2026 NBA Rising Stars Invitational earlier this year.
Even still, with all of the international opportunities Cariño had earned, BwB easily took the cake as his biggest stepping stone so far.
“I would say na ito yung highlight ng career ko so far. Not everyone kasi at my age have this opportunities, so blessed lang talaga and grateful lang ako sa lahat nito. Alam naman natin na the NBA is the highest level of basketball, so gusto ko talagang i-take advantage itong opportunity na ito.”
The Baby Tams anchor didn’t shy away from his goals either, saying that much like Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Joel Embiid, and Rui Hachimura, he hopes to be a BwB camper that ultimately advances to the NBA.
"The NBA is the dream of almost every young athlete like me, and yes, that’s definitely my goal. Pero right now, ang focus ko talaga is to keep improving myself, become a better player every day, and continue working hard," he said.
“Sabi ko nga, if you’re going to dream, why not dream big? I know I still have a long way to go, kaya tine-take advantage ko lang lahat ng opportunities na dumarating para mas gumaling pa. At the end of the day, Im thankful to Wassermann Sports, Sir Tony and Sir Marvin and all my coaches for believing in me.”
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