Another Feihl coming up?

National basketball team assistant coach Aboy Castro wasn’t sure if he heard right.

Aboy happened to sit beside a Filipina lady at the waiting area of the Vancouver airport. It was during a two-hour stopover from Las Vegas en route to Manila on the Philippine Airlines flight 107 yesterday.

The lady, Jennifer Gayutin Brandon, claimed her 19-year-old half-American son Orry Pounders is a seven-foot basketball player.

She overheard Aboy talking hoops with the national players fresh from seeing action at the Global Hoops Summit that ended last Wednesday in Las Vegas and volunteered the information.

Quickly, Aboy went over to national coach Chot Reyes sitting a few rows behind. There was excitement in Aboy’s voice. Chot’s eyes got big. Could he be another E. J. Fiehl? A seven-footer in the national pool would certainly be a blessing.

Aboy asked if he could introduce the lady from Cebu. Why not, replied Chot who got up and approached Jennifer. I came along, my ears wide open.

Brandon was her first husband’s surname, said the lady. "I’ve lived in the States since 1976 and I never bothered to change the name on my passport when we divorced," she said.

Now, she’s married to James Pounders. They both work in Las Vegas casinos and have only one child, Orry.

"Is your son really a seven-footer?" I asked.

‘I think so because he’s really tall," she said.

I asked Romel Adducul, sitting nearby, to stand up then turned to Jennifer. "Is your son taller than him?" I went on.

"A lot taller," she said. "I always tilt my head upwards when I talk to him standing up." So if her son is "a lot taller" than the 6-6 Romel, he should be at least 6-10.

"How much does he weigh," I wondered."I don’t know but he’s skinny, maybe about 220 pounds," she said. "His dream is to play in the NBA (National Basketball Association) but he’d like to play in the PBA (Philippine Basketball Association), too. He watches the PBA games on the Filipino Channel in the US. I told him PBA players get good pay, have their own cars and live comfortably in the Philippines. He’s excited to try out. I’ll bring him to Manila next year."

Jennifer said her son plays on an athletic scholarship for a San Francisco school.

"He’s entering his second year with the team," said Jennifer. "He lives with his aunt and I’m too busy with my work at Circus Circus in Las Vegas to find out about his games. Even when he was in high school, I couldn’t watch his games but I know his school had a good record. He eats a lot and wears those expensive Jordan shoes. He didn’t like to play at UNLV (University of Nevada at Las Vegas) and preferred to play in San Francisco."

Jennifer said her husband stands about 6-3 and is of Irish and native American descent.

The internet provided little information on Orry except that he transferred to Cimarron-Memorial High School in 2003-04 as a varsity player. Cimarron-Memorial is a public school in Clark County, Las Vegas, with a student population of over 2,700. Its basketball team is nicknamed the Spartans. There was no mention of Pounders’ playing statistics. A check on the University of San Francisco website also revealed nothing about Pounders.

Jennifer said she’s visiting her mom in Bohol and will be in the country for about three weeks.

I asked for her son’s e-mail address so we could communicate. She said she’ll call her son for it. I’m interested to find out if Orry is for real.

* * *

Danny Seigle begged off from playing in both the Global Hoops Summit in Las Vegas and the Jones Cup in Taipei because his older brother Andy is getting married to long-time girlfriend Jem in Pennsylvania this month.

The Seigles’ pal Jeffrey Cariaso is attending the wedding.

Nic Belasco, Danny Ildefonso, Mark Caguioa, Jimmy Alapag, Dorian Peña and Mark Telan were invited to join the national team in Taipei but they all declined for a variety of reasons.

Asi Taulava diligently attended every national team practice conducted by Joseph Uichico in Chot’s absence during the Las Vegas campaign.

"Asi’s in great shape and he’s learned all of our plays," said Chot. "He really wants to represent our country again. What he’s adjusting to is our system of not making him go to the low post every time we set up."

Chot said Asi will be a big help in the Jones Cup although he probably won’t start in the early games.

"I’ll start the Las Vegas guys," said Chot. "Then, we’ll bring Asi in off the bench. As he gets more familiar with our style, we’ll consider starting him."

Chot learned from the Las Vegas experience, a slow start is something you avoid like the plague.

* * *

Aboy, incidentally, was a senior manager at Proctor and Gamble when he resigned to make a career in basketball.

"Aboy is living his dream," said Chot. "I understand he was in line for an overseas posting in his previous job but he decided to get involved in basketball instead. I heard something similar happened to a co-employee who resigned as an expat from the company to become a pastor in the US. That man mentioned he did an Aboy. I met Aboy during our basketball camps with Tom Newell and he was a standout. When an opening for an assistant came up at Coca-Cola, I called him. Luckily for us, he agreed to join. He’s still pursuing his master’s degree in human relations at UP. He lives in Santa Rosa and drives all the way to the Moro Lorenzo gym for our practices every day. He’s totally committed to the national team."

As for national team trainer Dennis Aenlle, Chot said he, too, is well-credentialed. Dennis is certified by the US National Association of Strength and Conditioning Coaches.

"I met Dennis when I was coaching RFM," said Chot. "I told him his study expenses would be reimbursed by the team if he got his certification from the US. He worked hard for his certification. He deserved it."