PBA great and former national team member Francis Arnaiz urges the country’s top basketball officials to sustain the major gains earned from Gilas Pilipinas regaining cage supremacy in the Asian region.
And that could be achieved by deepening the program of the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP) through the youth.
Francis Arnaiz on Gilas success
“I just hope that whatever they did right, they will continue the program. They will continue investing in kids, younger people to carry on the message,” said the now US-based retired cager, who is currently vacationing in the country.
Known as the backcourt partner of basketball legend Robert Jaworski, the player who goes by the moniker "Mr Clutch", also once donned the country’s colors as member of the last all-Filipino team that captured the FIBA Asia Championship in 1973 in Manila,
He also saw action in the 1974 FIBA World Cup in Puerto Rico, where the Philippines finished 13th out of 14 countries.
Arnaiz was already in the country during the recent FIBA World Cup, and managed to watch the classification match between Gilas Pilipinas and China, which the Filipinos won, 96-75.
He also got to watch how the national team reigned supreme in the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, China, ending the country’s 61-year gold medal drought in the sport dearest to its heart.
“I am totally amazed and proud that we’re finally on top of the Asian region. We beat China, Jordan, Iran, Qatar, all these teams. We’re no. 1 again,” said the 72-year-old product of Ateneo and one of the pillars of the Toyota Tamaraws team that won nine championships in the PBA.
“That’s an accomplishment. I’m so proud of them, starting with the coach all the way to the players.”
Arnaiz is one of the PBA pioneer superstar players who would become synonymous to Jaworski as the PBA’s version of Batman and Robin.
Their partnership extended all the way to Ginebra San Miguel shortly after Toyota disbanded after the 1983 season.
The 5-foot-10 guard was still part of Ginebra’s first-ever championship in the PBA during the 1986 Open Conference, before retiring shortly after due to a recurring knee injury.
He was a Mythical First Team member three times, a member of the 25 and 40 Greatest Players of all time, and in 2005 was inducted as part of the first batch of the PBA Hall of Fame.
Despite all he had accomplished in his playing career, Arnaiz tipped his hat to what Gilas Pilipinas achieved in the Asiad.
“Hats off ako kay coach Tim Cone and his team. Bilib ako,” he said.
But then the challenge has only begun.
“Mas madali dumating doon (on top) than to stay there,” Arnaiz stressed. “But it’s a good start.”
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