Kobe Paras better than Benjie, say PBA legends Patrimonio, Caidic

MANILA, Philippines -- Basketball legends Allan Caidic and Alvin Patrimonio have no doubt that high school phenom Kobe Paras can easily surpass his father’s basketball achievements, given his athleticism and workman-like attitude in the game.

Caidic, one of the deadliest three-point gunners Philippine basketball has ever seen, was in awe seeing the 17-year-old Paras flaunt his game during the Rise Legacy Night on Saturday at the House of Rise, Mandaluyong City.

The youthful Paras soared for rim-rattling dunks, showed his silky-smooth outside shooting and went hard for the rebound against bigger defenders.

“You can see a lot of potential, saka kita mo mas athletic, mas malakas, maganda for Philippine basketball. And you can see that in Kobe,” Caidic told Philstar.com, moments after the three-hour program sponsored by Nike.

Team Destiny, led by the young Paras, UAAP collegiate stars Jeron Teng of La Salle and Thirdy Ravena of Ateneo, along with PBA stars Greg Slaughter and LA Tenorio, beat Caidic’s Team Legacy, 121-109.

The 52-year-old Caidic is hopeful that Paras won’t be contented with where he is today, but will continue to work hard in practice, work on every aspect of his game in order to surpass what his father Benjie has achieved throughout his basketball career.

“No. 1 siyempe iyung disiplina. Huwag makuntento sa na-achieve na ngayon kasi nagu-umpisa pa lang siya. Eh kung ikukumpara sa tatay or sa mga pabalik na, just needs to keep working hard,” added the ‘Triggerman’.

On the other hand, Patrimonio, one of only two PBA players to win the MVP four times, is thrilled to see Paras’ marked improvement from the last time he saw him while playing for La Salle Greenhills.

“Grabe nung bata. Ang laking improvement from the last time I saw him,” said Patrimonio, known during his basketball heydays as ‘the Captain’.

“Iba talaga kapag superb ang traning at expose sa magagaling sa US. Eh kami, nandito lang. Hoping and praying he can go all the way dahil I’m sure, malayo mararating ng bata,” he added.

Paras is entering his final year of high school at Los Angeles Cathedral.

The athletic son of the PBA legend is set to play college basketball at UCLA, which produced NBA legends Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Bill Walton, along with current NBA stars Russell Westbrook of Oklahoma City Thunder and Kevin Love of Cleveland Cavaliers.