IF three-time NCAA champion coach Louie Alas was at the helm and making the call for Ateneo, he’d probably be the only collegiate coach who’ll pass on a talent like Kieffer Alas.
“Sabi ko kung ako head coach dito, hindi kita kukunin,” he said with a resounding chuckle that echoed around the Mall of Asia Arena dugout hall as he, alongside his wife Lisa, waited for Kieffer to head out of the lockers in one NBTC game day last week.
“Sawa na ko mag-head coach sa mga anak ko e.”
READ: Kieffer Alas comes back home with everything to prove
Alas, after all, spent his final years as a college head coach with sons Kevin and Junjun as they flew the Letran Knights’ banner together from 2009 to 2012 in the NCAA.
In that four-year span together, the three made the semifinals thrice in four years and reached the finals once, with Alas holding a solid 49-29 head-coaching record with his sons.
Also around that time, their youngest Kieffer was being exposed more and more to basketball.
A big part of Kieffer’s early childhood, of course, was spent either cheering behind the Letran bench alongside the marching beat of the deafening drums inside the Playtime Filoil Center (then called The Arena in San Juan), or running around freely in the now-demolished old Letran gym as his brothers sweated it out during practices, his father shouting instructions in the background.
Fourteen years later, that same kid, now 19 – taller than all but one of his brothers, and certainly the most athletic among all the uber-talented Alas boys – has found himself back in the same bench with his dad, just like his brothers did.
Coach Louie, now 62 – still with that same handsome, commanding look, albeit with a little more white stubbles in his beard and mustache – gets a chance to go full-circle, in a different capacity this time.
“Ngayon si coach Tab [Baldwin] naman ang head coach. Lahat naman call niya. Nakatayo lang kami doon,” the Ateneo assistant coach shared.
“Journey din talaga ito. Hindi ko alam na makakarating kami hanggang dito. Nakita niyo naman yan nung bata pa, di ba? Alam ko naman na magiging player. Hindi ko alam na siya yung magiging ano, yung very passionate, sobra.”
Through Peaks and Valleys
That young kid’s journey has taken him from playing in the UAAP juniors basketball at such a young age, to suiting up for the national youth team, all the way to the mountain range area of Layton, Utah and the desert valleyways of Hurricane in St. George, Utah.
And as they’ve always been with all their three sons Kevin, Junjun and Kenneth – coach Louie and Ms. Lisa made sure to be there every step of the way.
Take Kieffer’s mom Lisa. A successful hotelier with 31 years of experience, she retired ahead of schedule to accompany her son as he tries his luck in the United States, first with Layton Christian and then Utah Prep.
Most of the time in the US, she’d be alone just to make sure that Kieffer doesn’t feel alone.
“May mga sacrifices din talaga kasi ayaw namin mag-isa siya sa America. Though once a week lang magkikita, minsan hindi pa," Alas recalled, sharing that Kieffer usually stayed with the team for the duration of the week.
"Gusto lang namin maramdaman ni Kieffer na anytime may pupuntahan siya, yung apartment na kinuha namin eight minutes away from the school."
READ: Kieffer Alas heads to Ateneo as first four-time NBTC All-Star
For his part, Alas has gone back and forth – flying back to the Philippines in August as Ateneo ramped up its preparation for UAAP Season 88, before heading back to the US as soon as their season ended.
It was at that time where Kieffer struggled. After suffering a severe ankle sprain, Kieffer eventually slipped out of Layton’s rotation. And while he continued being a good teammate and bringing in a positive attitude on the court, off it – frustrations were mounting, and the older Alas can tell.
“Pag balik ko ng December after ilang months, stressed na stressed siya. Pag katok ko palang sa apartment niya, sabi niya, ‘Dad, can I transfer?’” Alas recalled.
“Ako nararamdaman ko na pero hangga’t di ko naririnig sa bibig niya, hindi ko [pangungunahan].”
That’s when they decided to work out with their original choice, Utah Prep, under former TNT head coach Mark Dickle. The only problem was that it's roughly a seven-hour bus ride from Layton, where they were originally staying.
Without any assurances, the father-and-son pair pushed through. It was also around that time when Ateneo coach Tab Baldwin first showed his intentions to recruit Kieffer.
“Tryout talaga kami sa Utah Prep. Dati naman dun pa siya dapat pupunta. Good thing andun narin si coach Tab [Baldwin]. Naguusap sila ni Kieffer hindi na ako kasama, nire-recruit na siya. Okay naman yung tryout niya, isang linggo siya nag tryout,” he shared.
“By God’s grace nakuha siya. Ayun umayos na ulit siya at tumaas at tumaas ang kumpyansa. Yun nga lang, yung last four games niya, EYBL yun e, yung highest level of competition, di siya inallow maglaro cause late transferee siya pero walang residency doon,” he continued.
“Hanggang si coach Tab bumalik ulit. Kinausap siya.”
A Father First Before Coach
Believe it or not, despite coach Louie being one of Baldwin’s assistants at Ateneo, he shared that he had absolutely no part in recruiting his own son to play for them.
While Louie and Lisa have been all-out and hands-on in their sons’ careers, their role has always been to support and to guide, never to decide.
That was evident when young Kieffer decided to fly out and test his skills in the US. Or when he told his dad he was leaving Layton and wanted to try out elsewhere.
And in this particular decision, it was all Kieffer.
“Ito si Tab mismo kumuha sa kanya. Wala akong part doon. Si Tab nga tinatanong ako kung paano ma-acquire si Kieffer? Sabi ko, ‘You know his number,’ tapos binigay ko yung schedule ng mga games at sabi ko, ‘You talk to him,’” Alas recalled.
“Sabi niya, ‘But you’re the father,’ and sinabi ko naman na, ‘Yes, I’m the father but he’s 18 years old [so] he can decide.’”
Offers came for Kieffer, certainly.
Alas said La Salle’s management showed great intent in securing his son’s commitment, but it ultimately went down to one thing – the head coach himself showing up – something Baldwin did twice.
The Alas patriarch recalled that the same situation happened to Kevin – who, in his own right, was one of the highly recruited high school players in his class. Kevin chose La Salle at first, and had practiced already with the team, but had to take a U-turn to make a basketball decision.
“Si Kevin, ang tagal sa La Salle niyan, two months yan nag-practice sa La Salle. Pero yung nag-recruit sa kanya, managers din. Yung magttraining na sila papuntang States, sinabi sa kanya ni Franz [Pumaren] baka ma-culture shock dahil 16-years-old, batang bata, siya yung pinakabata sa team,” he shared.
“Kaya si Kevin four days before umalis ang La Salle [pa-States], umalis na siya. Ako na nagpaalam kay Franz. Sabi niya, ‘Coach, things beyond my control.’ Si Kevin, pag balik, sabi niya sa'kin, 'Dad, can I try out with your team? Sabi ko hindi ka na magttry out, kukunin kita.
"Kaya ko sinasabi yun, ayaw ko mangyari kay Kieffer yun with La Salle, managers lang magre-recruit, hindi ko alam kung gusto ba talaga siya.”
Eighteen years after that conversation with Franz Pumaren as he stuck out for his son Kevin, he did the same with Kieffer in that tough conversation with Layton coach Casey Stanley who initially didn’t want to let the youngest Alas walk.
But the pattern here is clear, when it comes to his sons, as tough as he may be as a head coach – he’ll always be a father first.
“Nung magpaalam kami sa Layton galit na galit ang coach, ayaw siyang payagan. Sabi niya ba’t di ko siya maintindihan dahil coach din ako, sabi ko sa kanya nagpapaalam kami sa 'yo not as a coach pero as a father,” he recalled.
“Again, maaring mali pero tatay ako, hindi ako coach dito.”
Full Circle
Alas shared that the key to his son’s decision was a clear and proper career path, something Baldwin laid out to him in the multiple meetings they had in the US.
While they could’ve pushed through in seeking out a Division 1 school for his son, something that isn’t far from reality if his Utah Prep coach in Dickle is to be asked, there’s always a risk of him languishing on the bench, depending on the school which picks him up.
The NCAA D1, of course, is a different competition altogether from the UAAP but Baldwin’s assurance of a proper career path convinced Kieffer to come back home.
“Kung hindi siya magamit, back to zero siya. Pag nagamit siya, [maganda.] Eh si Tab nilatagan siya ng [career path.] Sinasabi na, pwede ka naman mag-hasa ng career mo sa UAAP e. UAAP is not bad. So nag-decide siya,” Alas shared.
“Tumawag yan sa'kin kung kailan siya nag-commit. Sabi niya, 'Dad magco-commit na ko.”
And here they are now.
Fourteen years since he last coached his sons in college, Alas admits that it still takes time to get used to once again.
“Medyo awkward kasi kasama ko na naman. Pag dating nga doon hindi ko kino-coach, pinapabayaan ko na sa ibang assistant coaches. Mas kino-coach ko pa yung ibang bata kasi ayaw ko may masabi,” Alas said.
“Pag maaga kami dumating, nattrain ko siya sa skills pero after nun, nag-tune up kaming isa, low-five, hi-five lang, the rest sila na,” he continued.
“As of now, hindi pa ko ganun ka-kumportable sa sitwasyon. Pero eventually.”
That same kid who was once just running around freely in Louie Alas’ old stomping grounds in Intramuros is now walking into Ateneo’s Moro Lorenzo Gym as the most sought after prospect in his high school class, recruited no less by one of the most successful coaches in this era.
Sure, Louie Alas the head coach may have passed on recruiting his son, and luckily for Ateneo, he’s not the one calling the shots for the Blue Eagles.
But for Louie Alas as a dad, this full-circle moment means everything to him.
“Ako ang tanda ko na sa basketball, gusto ko lang siya makita mag-champion sa Ateneo. Yun lang talaga,” Alas said, before being reminded that of all his collegiate championships, none was with his sons.
“Meron akong mga championships na kasama hindi ko biological na anak e. So pwede na akong mag-retire makita ko lang mag-champion siya, si Kieffer. Hindi narin ako bumabata.”
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