Benjie Paras wows Pinoys in US
During the San Beda Red Lions’ post game huddle yesterday following their semis victory over the Arellano Chiefs in the Fr. Martin Cup tournament at the Trinity University of Asia gym, a queue of Trinity students, mostly female, formed next to where the team was. I thought they wanted a photo with some of the more popular players in the team, like Baser Amer, Rome Dela Rosa, Ola Adeogun or the semi-showbiz Semerad twins Anthony and David. But about 80% of these co-eds wanted none of them. Instead, they waited in line for a photo shoot with the PBA great that retired 10 years ago, Benjie Paras.
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Now in his second year as assistant coach of the Red Lions, the former two-time PBA MVP is just as well loved now as he was in his professional playing days. Of course, when he retired in 2003, he immediately jumped to show business where he became an instant hit as a comedian. Since then, the PBA’s only rookie MVP to date has appeared in several movie films and TV shows, both in a starring and supporting role. He was the main character in the movie “Dunkin Donato,” where he portrayed a young baranggay basketball hero that was granted magic powers by elves. In the movie, he is coached by cousin Buknoy, who is played by Benjie’s San Beda high school batch mate and now Quezon City mayor Herbert Bautista. One of the 25 greatest PBA players of all time, Benjie is currently on the AKTV roster of PBA commentators. And so he has never really been away from the television spotlight since he first stepped on the PBA hard court in 1989.
Yesterday’s scene at Trinity reminded me of when Benjie and I traveled to California last month to scout for potential recruits for the Red Lions. Benjie’s popularity was evident from the moment we stepped inside the NAIA, to the Philippine Airlines Airbus, to the Los Angeles airport. Filipinos often greeted him with smiles before asking for his autograph and photo. It makes me wonder how many of them are basketball fans and showbiz fans. But I’m sure a great number of them recognize him from his TV appearances in recent years that are shown in the U.S.
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On our first night in Corona, CA, we were hosted for dinner by San Beda alumnus Francis Manguramas in his lovely home on top of a hill, where other members of the Filipino Basketball League (FBL) Inland Empire assembled. They eagerly awaited our arrival for a chance to see the celebrity coach. The FBL organized the two-day try-outs for the Red Lions in Moreno Valley. Then we transferred to a nearby residence where a bigger group of Filipinos greeted us and, as expected, asked for a number of photo shoots with Paras.
The following day, we spent the afternoon strolling in a Corona mall. Each time a kababayan passes by, they would instantly recognize Benjie and ask for a picture taken with him.
On the first day of tryout, dozens of Pinoys came to watch and support over 30 aspirants wanting to be part of the 17-time NCAA champs. There Benjie met former Red Cubs teammates Macky De Joya, whose son Daniel was one of the standouts in the scrimmages, and Herbert Wenceslao, who was also his teammate in the University of the Philippines Fighting Maroons 1986 UAAP champion squad. Of course, the “picture-taking” persisted long after the tryout was over. The second day was pretty much the same.
In the next couple of days, various alumni groups took turns taking us to places, and in each place we visited, there were always Filipinos that are surprised to see Paras in the flesh. I guess the only place where nobody knew him was in Hooters in Corona where we gulped a couple of beers with Francis and his cousin Ronnie Genavia.
The most amazing for me was that even the younger generation of Filipinos who grew up in the states idolizes him as well. Francis’ second son Marku even viewed Benjie’s top 10 dunks in the PBA over at You Tube.
The tryouts in Moreno Valley proved to be successful, as we’ve chosen four candidates who will be invited to workout with the team in LA this summer. But more volunteers to organize tryouts in other parts of California have come forward, with the simple request for Paras to witness the sessions himself.
Today, aside from honing the post skills of San Beda’s frontline, Benjie has been looking after his two teenage sons, Andre and Kobe, as both have turned out to be remarkable basketball players as well. Andre played his last season with the La Salle Greenhills varsity in the NCAA last year and is currently being courted by DLSU, Ateneo, San Beda and UP. But although both Andre and Kobe make a lot of girls’ heads turn, they may not be match for their dad just yet.
