THE view from the top can sometimes get lonely.
That’s what Justin Chua realized when he was stuck on the Ateneo bench early on in the Blue Eagles’ historic five-peat in the UAAP men’s basketball competition.
The former Ateneo stalwart recalled his first two years with the Eagles when he was the third center in the team’s depth chart behind Rabeh Al-Hussaini and Noy Baclao.
That sparked thoughts of a change of scenery.
Justin Chua on transfer thoughts
“It wasn’t easy for me during those times,” Chua admitted on SPIN Zoom In. “May mga times din na gusto ko mag-transfer ng school, kasi first two years ko, bangko rin ako.”
Chua, a Chiang Kai Shek recruit, insisted there were no offers, but admitted thinking that La Salle and University of the Philippines were two ideal destinations owing to their lack of big men during that time.
But Ateneo coaches, led by Norman Black, preached patience to Chua.
“Syempre napaisip ako: ‘Anong ginagawa ko dito?’ Parang I wasn’t playing naman. Nasayangan ako,” Chua said.
“But I talked with some coaches namin,” he was quick to add. “They said if ipagpapalit mo ba yung team glory sa personal glory mo? Kasi we were back-to-back champions. They’re telling me na, ‘Ikaw naman na yung big man sa third year mo eh. Antayin mo na lang. Konti na lang.’
True enough, third time – or in this case, year, - was the charm for Chua as he was thrust into a starting role and shone as he anchored the Blue Eagles’ three-peat conquest.
Chua, though, thought he would be starting over again in his fourth year when celebrated University of Visayas recruit Greg Slaughter arrived.
“Parang out of the blue yun eh,” Chua said. “Parang ako, ‘eto na naman ulit. Mare-relegate na naman ako.’”
So thoughts of greener pastures elsewhere resurfaced.
“Thoughts, yeah, kasi syempre I wanted to finish my (college) career playing naman sana,” Chua admitted. “Build something for myself. Pero na-outweigh nung team success for me.”
“When I talked to the coaches again, sabi niya na you still get to play naman unlike your first two years,” he added.
“At the same time, sinabihan nila ako, ‘Jus, we’re eyeing four-peat, five-peat. Parang, gusto mo bang mawala dito? Don’t you want to be in the history books?’ So I guess that’s one reason also that made me stay.”
Black proved true to his word as Chua was still a fixture in the rotation, embracing his role as the Sixth Man to help the Eagles their flight to history.
Having five college titles under Chua’s belt, though, hardly convinced him to make the jump to the pros right away.
“I wasn’t really eyeing the PBA that time. I felt kulang pa, kasi I wasn’t playing that much,” Chua said. “I had good games, but pag papasok ka sa PBA, dapat maganda resume mo personally.”
So he honed his craft in the D-League with Blackwater, winning one championship in two and a half conferences the team, before knowing he was ready for the PBA.
Taken 10th overall in the 2013 Draft, Chua saw a script similar to his early college years as he tasted team success but a non-factor individually when he won an all-Filipino title with San Miguel a year later.
But after getting traded five teams, Chua finally found a home in Phoenix, playing his breakout year in the 2020 bubble to win the top defensive player award and finish second in the Most Improved Player race.
Now, as one of the key big men at NLEX, Chua is starting to enjoy the view from the top again.
Watch the full SPIN Zoom In episode with Chua below.
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