HOME is bigger than the American dream for Jimmy Alapag.
The new NLEX coach bared he still had ongoing talks with a handful of NBA teams that were interested his services after his stint as Sacramento Kings player development coach came to an end last April.
READ: Jamike Jarin joins Jimmy Alapag's coaching staff in NLEX
But instead of continuing to pursue his burgeoning NBA coaching career, Alapag felt the opportunity to return to the Philippines and call the shots for a PBA team was too good to pass up.
The the Fil-Am legend also has a chance to be part of the national team coaching staff once again after receiving a call from Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas executive director Erika Dy.
“At the time that I got the phone call from miss Erika, I was still in contact with probably seven or eight NBA teams and exploring potential opportunities as a player development coach, possibly as an assistant coach,” Alapag said on Tuesday, a day after he was officially named Road Warriors coach.
“But again, once the conversation started about Gilas and then a possible opportunity to come home and be a head coach, like I said, it just felt like the right time to come home and it's a great time for not just myself, but also for LJ and the kids and I.”
“They get a chance to see what it's like to be home. So I'm thankful for that and yeah, it was the right time,” the father of four added in the press conference organized by VP Global Management.
Alapag didn’t mention which NBA teams he was engaged in conversations about possible assistant coaching jobs.
Could one of those teams be the New York Knicks, the newly crowned NBA champions coached by Mike Brown, the former Kings mentor, under whom, the 48-year-old Alapag developed his skills as a coach?
Alapag did mention Brown congratulating him about getting the NLEX job and the possibility of the NBA champion coach paying him a visit in the country.
“He also reached out when I told him that I was coming back home. And, you know, he plans to visit the Philippines soon. So I'm looking forward to hosting him and his family,” Alapag said.
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