No fee for Chip

Denver Nuggets assistant coach for player development and Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) veteran Chip Engelland said the other day he would never think of charging a fee for lending a helping hand to the national squad.

"I would love to help out," said Engelland in an e-mail. "I would never think of taking any payment for helping the national team. It is an honor to just be thought of that I can help the great players of the Philippines."

Engelland said scheduling a trip to Manila is the immediate priority. "If you find out their schedule, please pass that on to me," he mentioned.

At the moment, Engelland is tied up in the National Basketball Association (NBA) playoffs where the Nuggets are playing the San Antonio Spurs in the first round.

"We’re busy preparing for San Antonio," said Engelland. "(Coach George) Karl has been wonderful and the team has really responded to his coaching. The Spurs are a tough match-up. They have Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili with a great group of complimentary players.

"Pop (Gregg Popovich) is a great coach who always has his team ready. We will have to play at a very high level to beat them. Carmelo (Anthony) had a great April, averaging 24 points a game. (Andre) Miller is passing very well and (Kenyon) Martin, (Marcus) Camby and Nene are tough inside."

Denver wound up the regular season with a 49-33 record, 25-4 after the All-Star break, to rank seventh in the Western Conference. The Spurs finished second in the West with a 59-23 mark. The Nuggets posted a 30-11 record at home. They host the Spurs in Games 3 and 4 plus 6, if necessary.

Denver registered a 43-39 mark to barge into the playoffs last season after an eight-year drought but was eliminated in the first round by Minnesota.

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National pool draftee Anthony Washington is not classified as a Fil-Am because he was born in Olongapo. His father Victor was a former US Navy serviceman stationed at Subic Naval Base. His mother Vivian Decatoria is from Leyte. He left here for the US when he was two and returned only last September to play in the Philippine Basketball League. The 6-7 Washington played a year at Queens College in New York and three years at Eckert College, an NCAA Division II school in Florida.

While playing for the Queens varsity, Washington remembered going up against a Fil-Am wearing the University of North Florida colors. The Fil-Am was John Arigo.

"I’m excited to play for the national team," said Washington whose half-sister Sharon lives in Leyte. "It’s a learning experience for me. I’m just trying to fit in with so much talent on the team. It’s always been a dream for me to play on the national team. It’s a special honor."

Washington, 23, described national coach Chot Reyes as more of a teacher than a drillmaster. "He teaches us, tells us what we’re doing wrong and shows us how to do things right," he said. "He works us hard at practice. We run the triangle so there’s a lot of cuts, players getting open for shots and passing. I don’t mind doing the dirty work like rebounding and playing defense." Washington is applying for the PBA draft in August.

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Former Chicago Bulls coach Phil Jackson had a special fondness for Alaska import Dickey Simpkins.

Jackson picked the 6-9, 255-pound Simpkins in the first round of the 1994 NBA draft, ahead of former Red Bull import Tony Lang and current FedEx import Anthony (Pig) Miller. Simpkins earned championship rings with the Bulls in 1996 and 1997 then was traded to Golden State for Scott Burrell before the 1997-98 season opened.

Fate brought Simpkins back to Chicago during the regular season and Jackson put him on the Bulls playoff roster. He was on the fabled Chicago squad that beat Utah for the 1998 title. Among his teammates at the Last Dance were Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Dennis Rodman and Burrell whom he was traded for earlier. Burrell would work his way to the PBA six years later.

In Roland Lazenby’s book "Blood on the Horns," Jackson was quoted as saying he liked Simpkins because he’s "a bigger kind of player who could play centers that are small like (Alonzo) Mourning."

When Simpkins rejoined the Bulls from Golden State, he said, "It’s like going off to war then coming back."

Simpkins, incidentally, played on the champion Bulls squad that racked up a 72-10 record in 1995-96.

At Providence College, Simpkins was described by college hoops writer Happy Fine as "fundamentally sound, a tenacious defender, a bruising pivotman (with) the mobility to be a good scorer around the basket." His varsity teammate for two seasons was former Alaska import Marques Bragg.

In 2001-02, Simpkins averaged 20.5 points and 11.9 rebounds for Rockford in the Continental league. He played seven years in the NBA.

Now in the PBA, the 33-year-old Simpkins has turned things around for Alaska. Since Simpkins took over from Leon Derricks, Alaska has gone from 1-3 to 6-4. The Aces are 5-1 with Simpkins in the lineup and they’ve won their last five.