ONE of the finest coaches in the country today and a rising young mentor took their acts to Dubai and spearheaded a coaching clinic organized by Mighty Sports.
Tab Baldwin, Charles Tiu hold Dubai clinic
Ateneo champion coach and former Gilas Pilipinas mentor Tab Baldwin, along with St. Benilde counterpart Charles Tiu supervised the Mighty Sports coaching clinic that attracted 80 coaches and players in the lively city of the United Arab Emirates.
Baldwin and Tiu taught players the basic fundamentals of shooting, passing, rebounding, and team play.
The two coaches later shared their own wealth of information culled from their own coaching journeys at different levels of basketball around the world.
“We had a great time here in Dubai, with coach Tab Baldwin sharing his knowledge and philosophies in coaching, and even life lessons to our fellow kababayans here,” said Tiu, who steered Mighty Sports to the 2016 and 2019 Jones Cup championship and the 2020 Dubai International Basketball Championship prior to the global pandemic.
“We were actually surprised with the turnout as a lot of coaches came, some of whom were familiar faces we would see watching our Mighty Sports games in the past years. We appreciated them all coming here, some of who even drove all the way from Abu Dhabi, and we even had some foreign coaches attending,” Tiu added. “It was a small way for us to give back to the Filipino community here that supported us throughout the years.”
Fresh off his long stint in a bubble setup during the UAAP men’s basketball tournament, Baldwin did not think twice about going to Dubai as it has always been his passion to share his knowledge of the game.
"I always love to make the game better for one reason: I love the game," said Baldwin, who has a vast experience basketball knowledge from coaching in New Zealand, Malaysia Lebanon, Jordan, and the Philippines.
In doing so, Baldwin missed out seeing his Ateneo players Gian Mamuyac and Tyler Tio get drafted in the PBA.
"The PBA draft is one of my favorite days of the year because that's when I really see the fruits of our labor in Ateneo. It gives me a huge sense of accomplishment to see Ateneo players grow and be the best versions of themselves, and then see them drafted in the PBA," said Baldwin.
"But I also love working with coaches and players so I didn't think twice about flying to Dubai for the Mighty Sports Coaching Clinic."
Still unable to represent the country in pocket and invitational tournaments due to the pandemic, Mighty Sports looked for another way to reach out to Filipino basketball enthusiasts overseas.
In an effort to provide not only continuous entertainment to basketball fans but also to equip Filipino coaches and players with the right skillset and technical knowledge to be successful in their careers, Mighty Sports came up with the idea to conduct the Dubai coaching clinic.
The clinic is presented by Czark Mak Corporation, Mount Fuji Japanese Restaurant, and Polaris Industrial Estates.
"We had a lot of fun in Dubai and I've always loved working with Filipino coaches and players. I just reminded all our attendees to live in the detail and to focus on fundamentals as these are what build up the whole of everything. It's a great achievement for Mighty Sports and we hope to do more of these clinics," said Baldwin.
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