CJ AUSTRIA gets a lot of questions from people on whether he is related to multi-time PBA champion Leo Austria. Those persons once included the San Miguel coach himself, CJ revealed.
“Isang beses, nagkita kami sa Activate (gym). Tinawag niya ako. Sabi niya, ‘CJ, daming nagsasabi anak daw kita.’” Sabi ko, ‘Coach, dami nga ring nagsasabi na tatay daw kita eh.’ Sabi ko, 'Hindi po,'” said the former De La Salle player with a smile.
READ Owners fume after Titan Ultra loses free agent CJ Austria to Blackwater
CJ traces his roots to Laguna, while Coach Leo is from Sariaya, Quezon. And to answer the question, the two are not related.
The two Austrias shared the same court on Tuesday when CJ made his PBA debut on Thursday when Blackwater faced San Miguel. It was a memorable one for the younger Austria as Blackwater won at the expense of the elder Austria and the rest of San Miguel, 125-120.
What made the debut even more memorable was that CJ had a hand in the win, contributing 11 points, six rebounds, and two assists.
“Sobrang sarap sa feeling na debut game ko tapos San Miguel kalaban, then nakuha pa namin yung panalo,” said Austria.
“Sobrang blessed lang din na nakuha namin 'yung panalo at tiwala na binibigay ni Coach Pat [Aquino] sa akin,” he added.
Austria had an unconventional route before his PBA debut. Picked No. 16 by NorthPort in the Season 50 draft, Austria had to finish his contractual commitments with Abra in the MPBL before moving to the PBA. He was also coming off a stint with De La Salle where he won a UAAP title in 2023.
Austria's rights became part of the sale of the NorthPort franchise to Pureblends Corporation, or Titan Ultra, but never played a single minute in the team.
The 24-year-old Austria later signed with Blackwater after being relegated by Titan Ultra to its unrestricted free agent with rights to salary list, one of the few times that a UFA opted to go to a new team.
“Pagka-draft sa akin ng Titan, nag-training ako almost one month. Lumabas yung line-up, napunta ako sa UFA. Nagte-training pa rin ako sa Titan kahit nasa UFA ako. One day, tumawag sa akin yung Blackwater, gusto nila ako makita.
"Pumunta ako sa kanila. Nabigyan ng chance na makapaglaro sa PBA. Sobrang blessed din yung nangyari sa akin,” said Austria.
The 6-foot-3 Austria said he left Titan Ultra in good terms with the ballclub.
“Okay naman ako sa mga coaches, sa mga teammates ko sa Titan. Nag-good luck sila sa bago kong team,” said Austria.
Having won championships previously, Austria goes into a team still longing for a deep playoff run since entering the league in 2014. Austria wants to also experience the same feeling at Blackwater, but patience is required. Lots of it, actually.
“Siguro step by step. Galing ako sa winning culture - sa La Salle, sa Abra. Step by step lang. Ilang days pa lang din ako nagpa-practice sa Blackwater. Hopefully, maging maganda ang pagtapos namin ng conference.
"Sa susunod na conference, sana mas ma-build pa yung team namin,” said Austria.
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