Ateneo's 'little big man' Ian Espinosa is ready for the challenges
MANILA, Philippines — An important trait for a point guard in basketball is to be able to read the game before it unfolds, as it happens, and what could possibly happen. He is the extension of the head coach, as such, he bears a lot of responsibility.
For Ateneo point guard Ian Espinosa, he’s learned to make reads on and off the court since he was playing for Ateneo de Iloilo back in grade school.
During one match in Iloilo with the Ateneo de Manila High School, then coach Ron Camara intimated to Espinosa’s coach about bringing him to the capital city.
“I knew I wasn’t ready at that time,” recalled Espinosa of that pitch to move in 2015.
The following season during the Jesuit Athletic Meet, his Iloilo squad once more played Ateneo de Manila. When Camara repeated his pitch, this time Ian moved.
“The additional year in Iloilo, and since it was my goal to play for Ateneo de Manila,” I was ready, he said.
The year he arrived was the last year the Blue Eaglets won a title. The next year, as the team lost a lot of players to the college ranks, the team had fewer weapons to complement Kai Sotto and Geo Chiu. They had Forthsky Padrigao and then Ian, who was learning the ropes.
In the middle of that season, Padrigao went down with an injury and Ian took over the starter’s position. Despite all the challenges, the team made it to the finals where they lost to National University.
The next year, there were even bigger challenges. The Blue Eagles lost their Twin Towers in Sotto and Chiu, but they saw the addition of Francis Lopez and Joshua Lazaro. Along with Padrigao, they battled the junior ranks’ best but fell short.
Espinosa surprised a lot of observers when Tab Baldwin called him up to the seniors squad. He was on the bench for that last banner season of 2022.
“I’ve learned a lot just watching from the bench — such as how to lead your team, how players develop, and looking at what you can exploit on offense or defense,” Espinosa observed.
“I think one of the biggest things I have learned is to pivot because it has been a roller-coaster ride since high school. You have great teammates one moment, then next kulang kami. I am off the bench then starting. We lose teammates and there’s a period of adjustment. I played for Tab, and now am under Louie. Life is like that — constantly changing, and you have to adapt quickly or be left behind.”
And there’s Dipaculao.
“One of the biggest lessons of Dipaculao is not to take anything for granted — life, teammates, friends, opportunities, everything. A near-death experience is something that perhaps I was too young to go through, but in honor of my fallen teammates — Divine Adili and Rene Baterbonia — you have to play through the pain and loss, and find that healing,” said Ian.
The weeks, days, and months since Dipaculao may have somewhat dulled the pain, however as Ian says, “You never forget. It’s there every day.”
Through the tragedy, Espinosa is playing with that old fire, spunk, drive and confidence. Being one of the seniors on the current crop of Blue Eagles (Ian has one year left in his college sports eligibility), the little man is standing tall in leading the team on and off the court, working hard, and being scrappy.
“We cannot make excuses about not having enough time to train or losing teammates,” concluded Ian following the 101-74 win over UE on opening day. “All I know is that we are given an opportunity because we are here and some are not. We have to make the most of it.”
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