Just call him Spo, short for Erik Spoelstra.
Half-Filipino (his mother hails from Laguna), Spo, 40, is the head coach of the Miami Heat about to begin his third season. According to the presskit, before he became a head coach, Spo spent 13 years in a variety of roles within the organization, including serving as the team’s video coordinator, assistant coach/video coordinator, assistant coach/advance scout and assistant coach/director of scouting in which capacity he developed game plans for the Heat’s upcoming opponents.
A member of the NBA Fit program, Spo is here with his assistant coach David Fizdale and celebrity athletes and wellness experts to conduct the first ever NBA Fit Week in the Philippines.
Before Spo started the session with UAAP and NCAA players, first with females and then with males, last Wednesday at the Big Dome, he sat for a one-on-one with Funfare.
Excerpts:
How often do you visit the Philippines?
“This is my third visit. The first time was when I was three years old. Last year, I was here with the NBA.”
Tell us more about your Filipino background.
“I would say that I grew up in an uncommon way. I grew up half-Filipino, a quarter Irish and a quarter Dutch. As a kid, I felt like I didn’t belong in any category that’s why I got into basketball because it allowed me to feel like I could belong.”
How does your being Filipino show?
“A lot of the Filipino traditions were passed on to me by my mother. My older sister and I grew up on Filipino food. My uncle makes terrific lumpia. My mother always stressed the importance of Filipino customs and values such as sticking together as a family.”
Are you familiar with Filipino players?
“Yes. My family is into basketball. It was my father who got me interested in basketball. As a kid, I was a sports lover. I used to be a big fan of Wade Bates. I’m familiar with how popular basketball is in the Philippines. My cousins used to send me DVDs of basketball games here. I’ve seen how passionate Filipinos are about basketball which is played everywhere, on the streets and in the backyard, something you don’t see in other places. As we travel from one venue to another, one of our favorite pastimes is to look out of the car’s window and watch kids playing basketball everywhere. That’s why it’s so much fun to come here because the kids want to learn.”
Aside from lumpia, what other Filipino food do you like?
“I like adobo, I eat too much of it. I tell you what, I live in Miami, Florida, and I thought we had good mango there until I tasted Filipino mango. There’s nothing like it. Ask my staff; Philippine mango is all we eat all the time.”
Tell us more about the NBA Fit Program.
“It’s a great project and I’m very passionate about it. I’ve been part of the NBA Fit Team for about a year now. What we try to do is promote healthy lifestyle through exercise, through eating right, by trying to learn about nutrition and also by making healthy choices. We can teach all of this with the game of basketball.”
I understand that you played for a German basketball team after graduating from college. Which is harder, playing or being a coach?
“Both have challenges. I was challenged when I was a player because I wasn’t quite as good as I wanted to be. I thought I was gonna play in the NBA but I wasn’t good enough. I played in Europe. To this day, I can say that I only have one regret in life — that I didn’t come to the Philippines to play in the PBA. I was recruited to play here but I ended up getting the opportunity with Miami Heat instead.”
It’s never too late.
“I’m only a couple of months away from being 40 so I’m smarter to know that my playing days are behind me.”
Does a Filipino player have a chance to get into NBA?
“I hope so. Right now, I’m the only Asian-American coach in any of the American sports and I hope my story can inspire my fellow Filipinos.”
Reigning MVP LeBron James is now with Miami Heat. How were you able to convince LeBron to choose Miami Heat over other teams?
“It was an incredible recruiting time at the beginning of July. With LeBron, we have a great team.”
I heard that LeBron was criticized for being “dramatic” and “commercial” by announcing his transfer via a one-hour show on ESPN. Do you think that critics were unfair to him?
“We have our team in place. We’re excited about it. The city of Miami is excited about it. All that is in the past now. Right now, we have about 48 days until training camp. It’s time to get to work as soon as I get back to Miami.”
What (pieces of) advice can you give LeBron?
“We have plenty of time to get into a lot of that. The season is long. It’s about eight months and we have quite a few more discussions. I’m looking forward to building up the team.”
Miami has three of the best players in the NBA — LeBron James, Chris Bosh and Dwayne Wade. Do you think you can capture the championship next year?
“Everybody knows what the goal is. Right now, it’s about process, it’s about the journey. Twenty years from now when we rest our heads on a pillow to go to bed at night, we’re gonna remember all the little journeys along the way. And that’s what we’re trying to prepare for the training camp and get ready for the ride.”
Who do you think will be your strongest opponent in the next NBA season?
“There’s gonna be a lot of competition. There are teams who got much better. They were already ahead of us last year. The Lakers are going for three championships in a row, so we know the competition will be stiff, and that’s why we can’t wait to get started and get back to work.”
Any more (pieces of) advice to Filipino players?
“It’s a terrific game and they shouldn’t forget to give back to the game. It has a lot of life lessons that we could learn, such as the values of hard work, discipline, sacrifice and the importance of working together. These things transcend sport and that’s why I respect the game so much.”
Gary Ignacio: Goodbye, Alamid
With vocalist Gary Ignacio out of the band, Alamid is searching for his replacement.
Gary’s last gig happened in Batangas last April 30 for the victory party of his cousin, Sen. Ralph Recto. He did not join the band anymore in their gigs during the month of May.
But the remaining members of Alamid refuse to fold up. Initially, they thought of disbanding but were convinced by the fans that they needed to move on. The group has also gathered a lot of the younger fan base since their resurgence in the local music scene that began in 2008.
“We were really sad about Gary’s decision to leave the band. He said he wanted to focus and give more time to his family. Siya kasi ang kasa-kasama ko sa pagawa ng magandang music ng Alamid nitong mga nagdaang taon,” said Dexter Facelo, the remaining original member of the band when it was formed in 1993 and discovered by Warner Music in November 1994.
The other remaining members of the band are Jun Pineda (bass), Gene Mitra (keyboards) and Jex Herradura (drums).
For the meantime, vocalist duties is being shared by the friends of the band – Carl McFly of the Carl McFly Band and Pepeng Sison of Frio.
The band just had a gig at Panama Jack in Makati last August 6. They played last night in Dasmariñas, Cavite, and will play tonight at 10th Bar Restaurant in Malolos, Bulacan, and on Aug. 16 at The Marketplace Mall, Mandaluyong City.
The band will make the announcement in the coming weeks on details about the search.
Kitchie Nadal back from New York
Kitchie Nadal came back the other night from New York, welcomed at the airport by her manager Tommy Tanchanco. During her two-year absence, Kitchie toured around Europe, Canada and the US, exploring the music scene in every place she visited. She also recorded new songs in the US and they will be released in an album within the year. It will be her third, to be released under a new multi-national label. ‘It will be a fresh, new sound,’ said Tommy. ‘The new label will be under a new management.’
(E-mail reactions at rickylo@philstar.net.ph or at entphilstar@yahoo.com)