The word on foreigners

This writer had a lively discussion on the DZMM program “Fastbreak” Saturday with former Sen. Freddie Webb, Boyet Sison and fellow guest sports journalist Rick Olivares. As is usual with conversations of this nature, the opinionated but humorous talk jumped from one subject to another, mostly covering basketball and boxing. It was so comprehensive, we covered just over half of the events of 2014 that were up for analysis.

One of the stickiest subjects, however, was that of foreigners in Philippine sports, and here we had the widest gulf of disagreement among us. I was saying that schools in the UAAP, NCAA and other leagues must present a united front on the issue, they have their own internal rules, so why aren’t all schools following them? Besides, the rules are that any student is eligible to represent his or her school in athletic competition. They do not make any distinction based on race, religion, nationality, and so on. But Webb strongly disagrees with the practice of having foreign student-athletes who are, essentially, imports studying here. Though some of us tried to argue in favor of development of the sport, he made an interesting point.

“They’re the ones who get better,” said Webb, who played in the PBA’s first decade. “They’re recruited to play, and they’re just strong and tall. They learn to play the game here, then they bring those skills back to where they came from.”

Olivares had a different angle on the issue.

“All the varsity athletes are recruited, and not just in basketball, in all sports,” said the former college professor. “And that’s how it’s done all over the world. If we were to take it further, what if they sent home athletes like Kobe Paras because they’re not American?”

One argument is that these foreign student-athletes are taking away roster spots from homegrown talents. But the counter-argument is that it helps the local athletes get better. And if the schools were so gung-ho about providing scholastic opportunities, would it hurt them to add one or two spots on the bench for those who truly deserve it? At the end of the day, the bottom line is fielding the best possible line-up you could have. If, in doing so, you manage to assemble a pool composed entirely of homegrown athletes, great, but if it is within the rules (and as of now, it is) to have foreign athletes, then you go with your best. After all the Olympics itself allows naturalized athletes (like Zola Budd and Hakeem Olajuwon). Their motto itself is “faster, higher, stronger”, not “but you must favor homegrown athletes who may not be better”.

In recent years, there have even been controversies in the US because Asian students (specifically Korean and Chinese) have claimed a disproportionately large portion of academic scholarships at the expense of American students. This led to reviews and changes in the allocation of scholarships in an attempt to balance it out. In this writer’s opinion, this is a form of reverse racism. Now, they are favoring the “disadvantaged” because of their nationality. I call that rewarding mediocrity.

Taking the long view, the best athletes, regardless of their sport, will rise to the top, and eventually compete internationally, whether it be for their school or the Philippine team, the sooner they experience the tough competition of stronger, taller, more athletically gifted opponents, the sooner they will be able to adjust. One of the reasons why the Philippine Azkals, for example, have improved over the years, is that they have been playing more frequently abroad, tasting firsthand the level of their competition. It has given them targets to aim for, study, and eventually overcome. Without this, they might as well be training in a vacuum, with no idea what they will be facing when their opponents take the field.

Another matter we took up briefly was the appointment of Tab Baldwin as head coach of the national men’s basketball team. Even in our conversations, off the air, we did not have any unanimity on the matter. In fact, some local basketball legends have taken exception to the appointment of a foreign national to such an important post, going so far as to say it is mercenary. Baldwin set some lofty goals for a team that, in essence, has not been formed yet. But like I always say, let’s see what happens first. We can always get upset later.

Some observers got upset when Baldwin was written to have confronted Arwind Santos after an endgame dunk with San Miguel Beer comfortably ahead and sweeping Talk ‘N Text. In the US, it is considered a sign of showing off, and has caused conflicts in the NBA in past instances. But the question is whether or not it is an American notion or not. It may cross the line into reading intent. For me, it would have been more upsetting if the leading team called a timeout to diagram a play, there would have been nothing to gain, no new play to try, by delaying the outcome of the game. That would clearly have been one-upmanship. But a player dunking in the course of the game? It would offend the pride of the other team, that’s true, and be used as fuel for future games.

Like I said in defense of Ron Jacobs almost 20 years ago, as long as certain sports are still a private matter, then you can’t argue with whomever is footing the bill. As long as private corporate funding is being used, that gives power and leverage to whoever is shouldering the expenses of the team. Like it or not, that’s how it works. Foreign consultants abound in all other fields. Expats fly in, run the show, increase profits, period, particularly in industries where Filipinos have less experience. The national team, however, is more ticklish, because we’re talking about basketball, a sport Filipinos pride themselves in their knowledge of. We know what we’re doing, and now, so does the rest of the world. There is a lot of pride and pressure involved, and with social media, a lot of criticism and second-guessing, too.