Myanmar, Wana capture hearts of local SEABA crowd

MANILA, Philippines — Myanmar has become the second favorite team by the crowd in the 2017 SEABA Championships.

It’s not hard to understand why.

In another losing stand Sunday against the Vietnamese, the listless Burmese pulled out every trick out of the bag. They shot treys, went for layups, attempted to employ plays, and dove for the loose ball.

But what stood out was their determination.

“One thing I’m proud of is that they never give up,” Myanmar’s head coach Ten Kok Heng said. “This is what I want, hopefully with the little bit of time before the SEA Games.”

And in the middle of all of their effort, it Aung Wana dazzled the Filipino crowd—which included naturalized big man Andray Blatche.

Playing almost carelessly, the lanky guard carried himself in a fashion reminiscent of Calvin Abueva’s raging-bull style: He attacked the basket whenever the lane’s open, he launched for a triple whenever he’s open, and oh, he made the occasional taunts, too.Abueva’s raging-bull style: He attacked the basket whenever the lane’s open, he launched for a triple whenever he’s open, and oh, he made the occasional taunts, too.

“He's good,” Heng said of his ward. “Offensively, he's good, but defensively, he's lazy,” he added with a chuckle. “That is why I'm having a hard time.”

Wana finished with 21 points, four rebounds, three steals and a dime in the game that saw Filipinos rally behind the Burmese.

Asked about the crowd’s warm reception, the 22-year-old Wana, through his bilingual teammate Sai Phyo Kyaw, expressed delight.Wana, through his bilingual teammate Sai Phyo Kyaw, expressed delight.

“He said he feels so proud that even Blatche cheers for him,” Wana said through Kyaw. “He learned so much from Philippines—like stamina, their set play, and their power.”Blatche cheers for him,” Wana said through Kyaw. “He learned so much from Philippines—like stamina, their set play, and their power.”

We might see more of the Sagaing native Wana as Heng noted that he will definitely field his ward in the Southeast Asian Games.

But for now, they’re simply making the most out of the opportunity to test their mettle in the international field.

“We don’t have the ability,” Heng said. “So we use this as exposure. We have no choice. As you can see, we are the smallest team—totally no experience. We’re little bit better and we see some defense. We’ll improve on that”