Farewell to a dear friend

The man who revolutionized Philippine basketball in the 1980s and whose influence is still evident in today’s game has passed away. Ron Jacobs went quietly at 8:30 p.m. in his Makati apartment on Christmas Eve and would’ve turned 73 today.

Ron’s wife Menen said the wake will begin at 6 tonight up to midnight at the San Francisco chapel of the Sanctuario de San Antonio in Forbes Park. It will be the same hours tomorrow. Ron’s remains were cremated the other day. “I ask for prayers instead of flowers,” said Menen who never left his side since he suffered a stroke and was bed-ridden in December 2001. “God bless us all. Eternal repose be granted unto him.”

A twist of fate brought Ron to the Philippines in 1980. He had just been named Coach of the Year in the West Coast Athletic Conference for guiding Loyola Marymount University to the NCAA Tournament when campus politics led to a surprise termination. It was Ron’s first and only season as Loyola head coach. He became a campus hero almost overnight and was a hot candidate to take over as Loyola athletic director when another contender disclosed an “anomaly.”

That other contender was the assistant athletic director and would’ve been bypassed if Ron got the job. The assistant athletic director had a hand in convincing Ron to take in a senior player Clay Johnson in the varsity lineup even if he wouldn’t play major minutes. Ron agreed as a gesture of respect. Johnson played sparingly and hardly contributed. Ron wasn’t aware that Johnson was a few units short of academic eligibility. If he knew, Ron wouldn’t have lined him up. As it turned out, the assistant athletic director “exposed” the “anomaly” after the season, causing the NCAA to forfeit Loyola’s playoff revenue and reverse its fortunes. Clearly a victim of a conspiracy, Ron was unceremoniously fired as head coach.

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Fresh from his termination, Ron was contacted by a team of “searchers” commissioned by then-basketball godfather Ambassador Danding Cojuangco to find an American coach for the national team. The “searchers” were Basketball Association of the Philippines secretary-general Honesto Mayoralgo, Dr. Fernando Carrascoso and Lito Lacson. Because of Mayoralgo’s Ateneo background, the team checked out prospects in Jesuit schools in the US. Eventually, the team was referred to Jacobs who was conveniently jobless. The team invited Jacobs to Manila for a visit and since he was “in between jobs,” he accepted.

Ron didn’t know much about the Philippines when he flew in. In fact, he recalled that as the airplane touched down, he wondered how basketball could be so popular in the country as he saw shanties, goats and animals on the streets looking out the window. Ron was led to the office of Ambassador Cojuangco and waited for a few hours before his turn came to meet. When they were finally introduced to each other, it was like lightning struck. They hit it off from the start. What was supposed to be a quick look-see trip to a “tropical island” turned out to be a lifetime commitment.

Ron was blown away by the Filipinos’ love for basketball. It was the perfect setting for a new chapter in his coaching career. His success story began to unravel. In 1981, Ron coached the Northern Cement team to the Jones Cup title in Taipei. The team roster listed Frankie Lim, J. B. Yango, Ricardo Brown, Willie Pearson, Dennis Still and Jeff Moore, among others. In 1982, Ron led the Philippines to the Asian Youth championship in Manila. An overflow crowd of over 30,000 witnessed the historic game where the Philippines beat China, 74-63, in the final. Ron’s players included Hector Calma, Jong Uichico, Derick Pumaren, Leo Austria, Elmer Reyes, Jun Tan, Tonichi Yturri, Alfie Almario, Rey Cuenco and Teddy Alfarero.

Ron’s greatest moments came in 1985. That year, Ron brought honor to the country by steering San Miguel Corp. to a 108-100 overtime win over the highly-touted US All-Star collegiate squad coached by Gene Keady in the Jones Cup final in Taipei. San Miguel’s cast was made up of Chip Engelland, Moore, Still, Samboy Lim, Allan Caidic, Calma, Franz Pumaren, Yturri, Yves Dignadice, Almario, Tan and Reyes. Reserves were Jerry Codiñera, Peter Aguilar, Al Solis and Naning Valenciano. The Americans were led by future NBA cagers Joe Wolf, Kenny Gattison, Harold Pressley and Kevin Henderson. Also on the US team were Jay Bilas, Tommy Amaker, Frank Ford, Todd Mitchell, Carven Holcombe, Anthony Watson and John Brownlee.

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That same year, Ron took the Philippines to the ABC (now known as FIBA Asia) throne via an 82-72 decision over China in the final. Unlike in the Jones Cup, FIBA allowed only two naturalized players for each national team so Ron chose Moore and Still to combine forces with Caidic, Lim, Calma, Dignadice, Reyes, Franz Pumaren, Yturri, Almario, Codiñera, Pido Jarencio and Benjie Gutierrez in the tournament. The win qualified the Philippines for the 1986 FIBA World Cup in Spain. However, the Philippines withdrew from the World Cup due to the disbandment of the national basketball program in the wake of the EDSA Revolution. The Philippines returned to the World Cup only last year. The FIBA rule on naturalized players has been changed to a limit of one for every national team.

It was also in 1985 that Ron won a PBA title with Northern Cement which swept Manila Beer in the Reinforced Conference finals. The victory was significant because Northern was a guest amateur team in the pro league. Ron’s impact on the PBA was recognized by a Coach of the Year award in 1997 and his induction into the Hall of Fame in 2007.

Ron suffered a stroke while driving his car in Manila in December 2001. At the time, he had just been named national coach for the 2002 Asian Games. Ron received round-the-clock care for 14 years that he was bed-ridden.

Ron spent the best years of his life in the Philippines, a country he called his own. He was fiercely loyal to Ambassador Cojuangco in repaying his trust and never hesitated to give back to Filipinos for the love they showed him. He shared his basketball knowledge with anyone and everyone. His protégés became coaches in their own right, including the Pumaren brothers, Austria, Uichico, Yturri, Tan, Eric Altamirano, Jarencio, Olsen Racela, Siot Tanquingcen, Binky Favis and many more. He wasn’t only a mentor to his protégés but also a father figure.

On a personal note, I will always cherish memories of long hours of talking basketball with Ron. He opened my eyes to the intricacies of the game, helping me out in my basketball analysis as a broadcaster and writer. Ron was a regular guy, too. He loved to watch his favorite TV series “Law and Order” while eating his favorite cinnamon gummy bears or Kor-Nuts. His Gilmore townhouse door was always left open for players, fans and journalists to step in for a chat or consultation.

Ron was a genius coach. He introduced the concept of roles in Philippine basketball and defined what a point guard, off-guard, small forward, power forward and center would do. He was a master of the matchup-zone and used little tricks to get a leg up on opponents, like sending in a player to report to the table officials at the last second to catch the other team off-guard. He showed the importance of scouting and video preparation, two elements now considered standard practice in the game. He worked the referees like a mind expert and his players would die for him on the court. “Coaches lose games, players win games” was something he often said to selflessly deflect recognition for his efforts.

More than anything, Ron was a dear friend. We had our disagreements. There was a time when we didn’t speak to each other for weeks. But like dear friends, we never let our differences of opinion come in the way of an enduring friendship. Ron wasn’t only a brilliant coach but also a man of principles.  How fortunate we are that in our lifetime, Ron Jacobs was in our midst. He will be missed immeasurably but his memory will live forever.