Sporting Chance

Alaska forward Don Carlos Allado said he has no regrets moving back to the Philippines.

While playing at Luther Burbank High School in California, he was recruited by scouts from schools like California State at Northridge (where Japanese-American Michael Dorsey, also known as Maikeru Takahashi, played), Scottsdale Junior College in Arizona, Chicago State, and Pepperdine. He was also spotted playing in city leagues with the likes of Jelani Gardner, Shareef Abdur-Rahim, and Tremaine Fowlkes.

But Allado was determined to make his mark in the land of his birth (he moved to the US when he was six). He played four years at La Salle, led the Archers to a pair of University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) titles, and bagged two MVP trophies. Allado also picked up two MVP awards in the Philippine Basketball League (PBL) before moving to Alaska in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) last year.

Allado's baptismal godfather Freddie Mendoza credited two coaches for influencing the budding superstar's winning attitude. "Ron Jacobs taught Don not to be a quitter - something that (Alaska team owner) Fred (Uytengsu) looks for in his players," said Mendoza who treats Allado like a son. "And Derick Pumaren - whom we all call Manong - taught him how to play tall."

Of course, Alaska coach Tim Cone is responsible for giving Allado the opportunity to blossom in the pros. Allado's contract is good up to the end of the 2001 season.

"Don's not after the money but what he can learn today to become a better player tomorrow," explained Mendoza, a former Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) Commissioner. "He's happy that Tim's giving him the chance to grow. Alaska is building a core of young players for the future - Kenneth (Duremdes), Rodney (Santos), Don, and Dino (Aldeguer) will form the backbone of the team in the next few years."

Allado said for the moment, he's fully concentrated on basketball.

"No girlfriends for me," he stressed. "Marriage? Not until I'm in my 30s. My mom (Joy) jokes that her grandchildren are my dogs."

Allado's pets are a golden retriever named Guinness and a pug named Goldberg. Allado and his dogs live with the Mendoza family in Alabang.

When he's not in the gym or playing a game, Allado just stays home, takes care of his dogs, mans the computer, and cooks stuff like lasagna and other pasta dishes. He also likes being with friends at the Alabang malls.

Allado's idol is Houston Rockets center Hakeem Olajuwon. "I like his moves," he noted. Olajuwon - known for his grace and polished skills - was named to the National Basketball Association (NBA) Golden Anniversary team as one of the league's greatest 50 players ever.

On La Salle's twin wins in the UAAP, Allado said the first title was more memorable because it was the icebreaker. But the second championship had to be sweeter. Allado recalled that in the clincher last year, he was hospitalized two days before the game and ran a 39 degree fever. "I was loaded with antibiotics - I was so weak because of my fever but I didn't want to let it show," he related. "When it was finally over, I could hardly stand."

Allado said he has four trimesters left before earning his degree at La Salle. He's thinking of shifting majors from Recreational Management to Pscyhology. An option is to enroll in night school at St. Benilde, a part of the La Salle system, and become a sort of working student. That would mean going to class on practice days. Education, obviously, is an important priority for Allado.

As for the opposition in the PBA, Allado said all the teams are tough. "I've had my baptism of fire," he continued. "In a game against Ginebra, Wilmer (Ong) dug an elbow into my chest and hit my chin, too. I knew all along the game would be physical, I expected it. Tanduay is particularly tough because Eric (Menk) and Sonny (Alvarado) are so hard to stop."

How far Allado will go in the PBA remains to be seen. From all indications, the sky's the limit. Allado has a head on his shoulders -thanks to the upbringing he got from his parents Loy and Joy - a doting father-figure in Mendoza, and the winning attitude to make it to the top.