Ato still hooked on hoops

Loreto (Ato) Tolentino was once among the highest-salaried players in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). That was when a P12,000 monthly paycheck was considered a fortune.

The six-foot forward played five years in the pros. He was a league pioneer when the PBA broke ground in 1975 and saw action until an injury — a torn cartilage in his left knee - forced his retirement in 1979. As a sophomore pro in 1976, Tolentino averaged 26.9 points in 30 games. He would’ve easily upped his clip to over 30 if only the rules allowed three-pointers.

Tolentino, now 56, underwent surgery to repair the damage in his knee and was paid a cool P500,000 to buy out the rest of his Great Taste contract which still had four years to go. He later attempted a comeback but couldn’t get his release from Great Taste to play for Tito Eduque at Mariwasa. Great Taste management offered to reactivate Tolentino but would only pay him a gasoline allowance to play because of the earlier P500,000 settlement. Unable to negotiate a release, Tolentino decided to concentrate on his new career — coaching.

Tolentino, whose younger brother Tomasito also played in the PBA, traces his roots to Lubao, Pampanga — hometown of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. Tolentino’s father Patricio, a dentist, and the President’s father Diosdado were classmates in Lubao. On weekends, Tolentino goes home to Lubao where he has a resthouse with a swimming pool.

While recuperating from knee surgery, Tolentino took the coaching job at his alma mater University of Manila (UM) in 1980. He was a star cager at UM where he earned a marketing degree and also at Far Eastern University (FEU) where he studied banking and finance. Coaching became second nature to Tolentino who said he enjoys teaching young kids how to play.

In 1986, Tolentino left for the US to try out a new life. He did odd jobs in San Francisco, including working as a driver and in a rent-a-car company. Tolentino hung out with ex-PBA pros like Danny Florencio and Estoy Estrada in the Bay Area. He also set up a travel business in Houston. But life was hard for a Filipino struggling to make a living in the US. He said former big-time PBA players settled for jobs like parking cars in a lot and doing janitor work. Eventually, Tolentino returned home in 1992 and got back his coaching job at UM. In his six-year absence, UM tried out several coaches — Nic Jorge, Arlene Rodriguez and Eddie Reyes — but none achieved the record of success with the varsity as Tolentino.

Through the years, Tolentino has produced several outstanding cagers at UM. Bong Alvarez, Eugene Quilban and Banjo Calpito played at UM before moving to San Sebastian College. Jun Limpot wore the Hawks high school colors before transferring to La Salle.

Other PBA players who were UM products included Nelson Asaytono, Joel Dualan, Eugene Tan, Leo Avenido (before leaving for FEU), Jovy Sese, Biboy Simon, Cris Bolado, Joseph Pelaez, and Ruel Bravo.

Because UM does not play in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) and the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), its cagers are easily tempted to jump ship to the glamour leagues. Neither UM Executive Vice President Ernesto de los Santos nor Tolentino blames the players who move. De los Santos said he will not stand in the way of a player’s progress. But it makes keeping a competitive team intact a much harder task.

Take the case of PBA veteran Tony Boy Espinosa. De los Santos, the varsity manager, spotted Espinosa playing in an Iloilo students competition and offered the point guard a UM scholarship. De los Santos even spoke to Espinosa’s parents to arrange a trip to Manila. But when Espinosa landed in the big city, he was offered a scholarship to play for La Salle. Espinosa later returned the money De los Santos had given for his transportation to Manila.

Another case involved incoming PBA rookie Reynel Hugnatan whose parents couldn’t wait for the kid to start playing for pay. When the Metropolitan Basketball Association (MBA) dangled a P15,000 monthly salary, Hugnatan left the UM campus after playing two years in high school and only a season in the seniors division.

What makes Tolentino’s job more challenging is he’s left with players who are either too raw to play in the glamour leagues or discards from the high-profile schools. But Tolentino wouldn’t have it any other way. It brings out the teacher in him.

Tolentino said he’s picked up a lot of pointers from his previous coaches like Eduque, Caloy Loyzaga, Boy Marquez, Nilo Verona, Jimmy Mariano, and Tony Genato. When he was in the US, Tolentino said he’d sneak into gyms to watch the Golden State Warriors practice in Oakland the Rockets in Houston. Today, he keeps abreast of the latest trends in coaching by reading books and watching games on TV.

"Ako’y naniniwala na marami tayong good coaches na local at ‘di na dapat tayong kumuha ng imported," said Tolentino. "Sayang at instead na napupunta ang magagandang sweldo sa local, napupunta sa ‘Kano. Kaya naman natin talunin ‘yun mga ‘Kano kagaya ni (Bill) Bayno."

Tolentino said American coaches don’t understand the psyche of the Filipino players. "Dapat military style ang gamitin sa coaching," he elaborated. "Sa international tournaments, dapat bawal ang magdala ng asawa. At bawal ang maglaro ng papetik-petik. Dapat hard defense palagi at hindi ‘yun namamasyal lang sa court."

At UM, Tolentino said he used to recruit big players because his offense was geared towards the interior but now, learning from the international game, his attack is concentrated on hitting the outside shot. He explained that as Filipinos will never be big enough to compete against the Chinese or Koreans in the paint, he’d rather bring the focus of the offense to the perimeter.

Tolentino, who once played for the Philippine national team with the likes of Sonny Reyes and Tembong Melencio at the Pesta Sukan Games in Singapore, said a milestone in his coaching career was when UM nearly upset Australia and lost in overtime during the 1998 BAP Centennial Cup. Australia made mincemeat of the opposition until running into the Hawks who were up by three with a minute left and would’ve increased the margin to five if only Biboy Simon hit his free throws. A last-second questionable triple sent the game into overtime.

Another milestone was leading UM to the 1999 National Intercollegiate title in Ozamis City. The Hawks beat Roger Yap and the University of San Jose Recoletos, 94-90, in the finals. After the championship game, Tolentino collapsed in exhaustion. He said the eliminators leading to the title match were all cliffhangers. He was completely drained when the tournament was finally over.

Tolentino said he was once considered to coach Ateneo after Baby Dalupan’s retirement and would’ve joined Great Taste as Tommy Manotoc’s assistant if not for the club’s sale to Sta. Lucia in 1993. He had coaching stints at ERDC and Rizal Athletic Club in the Philippine Amateur Basketball League which later metamorphosed into the Philippine Basketball League. As fate would have it, Tolentino has stuck it out at UM where he is considered a living legend.

Tolentino, whose son Elvis is a 5-10 point guard playing for the College of St. Benilde in the NCAA, coaches both the UM high school and seniors teams. While the job of coaching both squads is awesome, Tolentino said it’s for continuity.

At the moment, Tolentino is content coaching UM in the 10-team National Athletic Association of Schools, Colleges and Universities (NAASCU) where it is the defending seniors champion. NAASCU was the first league sanctioned by the Basketball Association of the Philippines (BAP) in the new millennium under president Tiny Literal and secretary-general Graham Lim. The league lists AMA Computer College, Holy Angel College, Fatima, Pasay University, Makati University, St. Claire, Arellano University, Angeles University, City College of Manila and UM as its members. It is linked to Joe Lipa’s Champions League and there are plans to expand to Tarlac and Dagupan this year.

De los Santos said scouting is the key to UM’s basketball success. And of course, Tolentino’s coaching has made a difference.