Persistence pays off for Forte

Alaska import Jason Forte never gave up on his dream to play an entire conference in the PBA. Last year, he was inked as a walk-on by Air 21 to replace Keena Young but survived only two games before exiting to make way for Reggie Larry in the Fiesta Conference. Forte wasn’t fazed.

Forte’s road to the PBA was littered with obstacles. He flew in on his own early last year, hoping to hook up with a team – any team. Mark Chan, the Philippine representative of the Los Angeles-based Basketball Beyond Borders agency, put up Forte in a hotel then when no deal was in the offing, brought the 6-4 forward to live in his house for three months.

At first, Forte tried out for a spot in the Coca-Cola lineup. No dice. Tigers coach Bo Perasol decided to recruit tried-and-tested veteran James Penny instead. Perasol didn’t regret his decision – at the outset – as Penny powered the Tigers to a 3-0 start. But Penny was eventually axed at the heels of four straight losses, replaced by Rashad Bell.

With no takers in the PBA, Forte suited up for the M. Lhuillier Kwarta Padala in an exhibition series with PBA clubs in Cebu in March last year. Forte led the Niños to upset wins over Talk ‘N’ Text, 99-95, and Alaska, 88-87. He was particularly impressive against the Aces, pouring in 24 points. Apparently, Alaska coach Tim Cone never forgot about Forte.

Back in Manila, Forte tried his luck at the Air 21 camp and coach Yeng Guiao gave him a chance. He scored 20 points in a forgettable PBA debut as Alaska downed the Express, 105-95, in April. Then, Forte fired 26 in his next game but alas, Air 21 lost again, this time to Sta. Lucia Realty in a 106-98 overtime decision. After two strikes, Guiao didn’t wait for a third to hand Forte a pink slip.

Forte, who is not related to former Boston Celtics and Seattle SuperSonics forward Joseph Forte, went on to play for Targu Mures in the Rumanian league, averaging 17 points, 8.5 rebounds and 2.1 assists in 33 games. He shot .573 from the field, .339 from three-point range and .641 from the line.

As a senior at Bay Springs High School in Mississippi, Forte averaged 28 points, 9.6 rebounds and 6.0 assists to earn 2-A State MVP honors. He was considered the top collegiate prospect in the state in 2001-02, making it to the Jackson Clarion-Ledger’s Dandy Dozen. 

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Forte, 27, never averaged in double figures in a four-year career with the Southern Mississippi varsity. In his first season with the Golden Eagles varsity, Forte averaged only 2.6 points, 1.3 rebounds and 11.5 minutes in 26 games. Southern Mississippi, an NCAA Division I school, posted a lowly 13-16 record. “He’s got a good body and can shoot it,” said varsity coach James Green. “He can guard, he’s a guy who’ll play minutes.” As a sophomore, he started in 10 games but his numbers weren’t significantly higher – 3.5 points, 2.2 rebounds and 17.7 minutes. The varsity finished at 13-15 in Green’s farewell campaign. The next season, coach Larry Eustachy fared even worse as the Golden Eagles dropped to 11-17 with Forte averaging 6.1 points and 3.9 rebounds in a sixth man capacity. For the year, Forte took only eight triples, converting six. Forte improved his stats to 8.5 points and 5.0 rebounds in his senior year but the varsity continued to plummet, falling to 10-21.

Out of school, Forte labored in the Continental league for two years then played briefly as an import in Germany and Turkey, without much success. He took his sneakers to the Philippines, went to Rumania and prayed for another chance to display his wares in the PBA. Cone answered his prayers.

“Coach Tim only had Jason in mind for the Governors Cup,” said Chan. “He remembered Jason playing against Alaska last year. Coach Tim wanted an import who could play multiple positions and Jason can play one, two, three and even up to four. Coach Tim was impressed with his upper body strength. He looked for Jason and we brought him back.”

Clearly, Cone saw something in Forte that most other coaches didn’t. In the Governors Cup eliminations, Forte never scored in the 30s – his high was 29 in a 107-102 Aces win over B-Meg last June 22. Alaska lost its first two outings in the conference but Cone never panicked. He stuck with Forte even as other teams scrambled to switch imports. Cone figured the best was yet to come from Forte. He was right.

Against Petron in the semifinals last week, Forte erupted for 36 points and grabbed 16 rebounds as Alaska repulsed the Blaze, 88-81. Last Sunday, he compiled 42 points, 17 rebounds and six assists to lift the Aces to a 105-86 decision over the Derby Ace Llamados.

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Chan works with former Canadian national basketball team player Robert Wilson who owns the Basketball Beyond Borders agency. Wilson, a 1994 World Championship veteran, also has representatives in Europe, Korea and Brazil. Chan was previously based in Toronto and owns an MBA degree from UCLA. Wilson’s agency is known to stress the three Bs – “Be professional on and off the court, Be honest in your dealings with other players and other teams and Be prepared for any jobs you accept as a player.” Another import whom Chan recruited is B-Meg’s Myron Allen. Rain Or Shine’s Gabe Norwood is one of Chan’s local talents.

Alaska didn’t make it beyond the quarterfinals of the Philippine Cup and Fiesta Conference this season. So the Aces are itching to barge into the finals of the Governors Cup. They play Rain Or Shine in their last semifinal assignment tomorrow. If Alaska wins, it will end up at 8-5. If Barangay Ginebra beats Rain Or Shine on Friday, the Kings will also wind up at 8-5. And if Petron sweeps its last two games against B-Meg and Talk ‘N’ Text, it will be the third team to finish at 8-5. That will create a triple tie for second place. In this situation, Petron will qualify for the finals with the superior quotient of plus 13 against Alaska’s plus 6 and Ginebra’s minus 17.

The only team that’s guaranteed to make it to the finals is Talk ‘N’ Text with a 9-3 record so far. The Tropa battles Petron to complete their semifinal schedules on Friday. No other team will be able to reach nine wins. At the moment, Rain Or Shine is the only squad with a shot at earning the four-of-five incentive to gain a playoff for the second finals slot. The Elasto Painters are 2-1 in the semifinals with games against Alaska and Ginebra left. If Rain Or Shine wins its last two games, it will automatically disqualify the Aces and Kings and if Petron loses once more, it will be the Elasto Painters against Talk ‘N’ Text in the finals. In the event of a tie between Rain Or Shine and Petron for second place, the Elasto Painters will advance because of a superior plus 46 quotient.