Jimmy Alapag recalls early struggles in basketball
MANILA, Philippines — After a long and decorated career in the PBA and with the national team, Jimmy Alapag has become a household name in Philippine basketball.
But before his success on the hardcourt, the Alab Pilipinas head coach had to endure a lot of struggles in the early days of his career.
Talking to UAAP and NCAA point guard's via Zoom in GOAT Academy's GOAT Sessions, Alapag shared his experience in high school where he almost gave up the game.
Standing at only 4'9" in his freshman year, Alapag struggled to find any playing time with the varsity team.
"In high school, status is important. Lahat ng kaibigan ko [said] Oh man, Jimmy you're on the varisty team and you're only a freshman... all of a sudden, nagstart yung game, I'm not playing," Alapag narrated to Ateneo's SJ Belangel, DLSU's Aljun Melecion, San Sebastian's RK Ilagan and Mapua's Laurenz Victoria.
Alapag shared his frustration over not getting any minutes, saying he was always the hardest worker on the team — practicing day in and day out.
"It had gotten to a point where yung crowd sa high school games namin, sigawan sila put Jimmy in the game when we were down twenty points or up twenty points," Alapag said.
"That's not cool right? It becomes embarassing," he added.
He said that the experiences almost made him want to quit basketball during his second year with the team.
"I told my high school coach I just wanna say, salamat for the opportunity... pero hindi kaya," he said.
"I was literally at the point [where] I had lahat ng gamit ko, all my practice jerseys, my game jerseys I had it ready to give to my coach and quit... [but] I went and had a long talk sa head coach namin, we spoke for about two hours and he convinced me just keep working," he added.
Alapag's persistence paid off in the long run, with the 42-year-old having a long and vibrant career in Philippine basketball highlighted with a stint with the national team.
The former Gilas Pilipinas mainstay shared his experience to serve as motivation for collegiate players and preached that hard work always paid off.
If the Filipino "Mighty Mouse" had given up the sport in his early years, Philippine basketball may not be the same as it is today.
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