AMONG current coaches in UAAP Season 89, quite a strong argument can be made that the tactician facing the most adversity is Paulo Hubalde at University of the East.
He inherited the job with the tournament already underway - and just like that, he's dangerously close to being the shot-caller for a squad that may match the third-longest losing skid in history.
But even as they lost their 25th straight match, just two away from the University of the Philippines' infamous dark days, the interim coach isn’t fazed by the defeats that just keep coming.
“Sabi ko naman sa kanila, we cannot do anything about the past,” he shared with SPIN.ph. “What we can do is what we can do now and for the future. So yung outside noise na yan, wala tayo dyan.”
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Rather than focusing on avoiding the looming threat of tying the Fighting Maroons' 27-game dry spell from 2012-14, the 45-year-old coach is instead locked in on revitalizing his stalwarts' spirits.
Personnel aside, Hubalde reiterated his top priority bringing back the confidence of everybody on the red-and-white team - staff, included.
As he explained, “Yung confidence na lang to compete. I'm sure right now, na-feel na nila yun. It's just a matter of you have to play both ways. You cannot just have confidence in offense and you don't have confidence in defense.“
“It's not that we don't have any confidence, but we need to work even more on defense.”
Pride in UE
Right smack in the middle of this downward spiral, Hubalde finds great responsibility in being the latest head coach of one of the most storied programs in UAAP history.
Given the heavy burden of keeping the squad afloat in these trying times, the shot-caller from Quezon City emphasized to his wards that the ball is round, no matter how permanent their predicament presently feels.
“We’re still far away from what we need them to be and where we want to go. Kung anong meron tayo, we just have to protect it and improve as a team. And sabi ko nga, life is unfair. Ano bang gagawin mo? Magmamaktol ka na lang ba? Hindi,“ he said.
“Atakihin natin yung life. Kailangan mo mag-plant, mag-plant, mag-plant. Basketball, kung anong i-plant mo, soon enough, it will love you back.”
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