PLAYING college ball in the US is still a viable option for players, especially for Filipinos aspiring to make it to the NBA.
That's the firm belief of new UC Riverside coach Mike Magpayo.
But to be successful in that endeavor, one must find the right situation.
"You have to pick the right place," Magpayo, the first mentor of Asian and Filipino descent to be named as head coach of a Division 1 program in the US NCAA, told Coaches Unfiltered.
Magpayo said there's no particular formula for success. And proof to that has been the Filipino players who tried their luck in US colleges.
Japeth Aguilar was the first, leaving Ateneo in 2005 to explore greener pastures at Western Kentucky. It wasn't what he envisioned, though, as he was largely a reserve in his two years with the Hilltoppers.
Kobe Paras had more or less the same fate. From La Salle Greenhills, he transferred to Middlebrooks Academy for his high school ball before committing to UCLA.
He, however, withdrew even before lacing his sneakers and moved to Creighton where he spent a lone season and played sparingly.
Paras soon went to Cal State Northridge but never played following the firing of coach Reggie Theus before heading home and suiting up for University of the Philippines.
To Magpayo, Paras' case was just unfortunate knowing the gifts that the second-generation star had.
"Kobe had athleticism and he had talent. He was very, very athletic and obviously, UCLA would have been great, but maybe it wasn’t the right level. So he goes to Creighton, and that’s even a higher level and right now that’s even higher level than UCLA," he said.
What also hurt both Aguilar and Paras were the little minutes that they got.
"You got to play," Magpayo said. "That’s how you get better, you have to play. So you just have to pick the right place."
Since then, no homegrown Filipino talent has tried their luck with any US college.
Kai Sotto was the closest as he was courted by a bevy of schools, yet ultimately chose to sign with the NBA G League select team.
Magpayo did note that a talent like Sotto would have been a game-changer in the US NCAA.
"I would love for Kai to be in the NCAA and I think Kai would do really well," he said. "My coaching friends at the higher levels always contact me like they want my help with Kai and (they see that) he’ll be good at the college level."
Sotto's decision further underscores the hard task prospects must do to "pick the right place" as talents all over the world now have lots of options on where they can choose to take their careers to, including staying at home.
"I think there are definitely more opportunities, and the other thing is you guys are fighting for them, too," Magpayo said.
"You want (Sotto) at Ateneo too, right? It’s kind of like when I was at Columbia and I go to Germany and I recruit a kid named Maodo Lo who was from Berlin. They want him there, too. So there are countries who would love to keep their players there.
"Do you guys want the players to come here in college or do you guys want to keep them there and develop? That would be the tricky thing, but if you do send them here, there are opportunities and there’s tons of opportunities here."
In the end, though, no journey comes easy, especially for Filipino hopefuls who want to achieve their dreams of playing in the NBA or internationally.
Magpayo said it's all a process, much like the path he also took to his current job at UC Riverside.
"I think us as Filipinos, we want (to make it to the NBA). My mom wants me to be in the NBA and be a (Los Angeles) Lakers coach right now," he said. "But mom, we want to be here at UC Riverside. So let’s try to win here and keep my job, and let me try to prove that I can coach first."
And Magpayo only hopes nothing but the best for the next generation of Filipino dreamers.
"I root for all the Filipinos," he said.
Spin fans unite at Spin Viber Community! Join the growing community now! Complete the experience by subscribing in the Spin Chatbot and download the Spin Game Sticker Pack.
Get more of the latest sports news & updates on SPIN.ph