Getting an upgrade

An old standby of Philippine sports television re-launches tomorrow at 3 p.m. over Basketball TV. The Basketball Show: Upgrade combines the best segments from the country’s longest-running basketball magazine show and new features that make following your favorite hoops stars more fun.

The program will be hosted by fifteen-year old upcoming baller Vince Velasco who, as a high school freshman, was accepted to the Nike Elite Basketball Camp which was primarily for juniors and seniors. Velasco has seen action for the Benedictine International School Tiger Sharks, and is an avid student of the game. He will be joined by a pair of new faces in collegiate basketball, the NCAA TV coverage’s Bea Atienza and Melanie Martinez, and yours truly.

The first episode of the Basketball Show: Uprade asks your favorite basketball players which Christmas gift they will never forget. You’ll find out which players have vivid memories of the first basketballs and rubber shoes given to them, who remembers times with their parents or girlfriends, and what those memories mean to them.

As per the emphatic requests of the show’s regular viewers, the show has put a new SlamBook segment with reigning PBA Most Valuable Player James Yap, where he reveals all his favorites (like the dry probinsya-style adobo, LeBron James, Samboy Lim and others), likes and dislikes. For the last five years, SlamBook has been the program’s signature segment, often imitated.

We also visit d’café, the terrific new coffee shop and restaurant owned by soon-to-be married couple, PBA Finals MVP Marc Pingris and actress Danica Sotto.

"I’m not going to be a basketball player forever," Pingris says. "At first we were worried, because we were using up our savings. But now that things are picking up, we’re okay."

d’café features an exquisite mix of Asian cuisine, and a wide and surprising selection of great coffees. With its great location on Sgt. Esguerra St. (smack in between ABS-CBN and GMA), it has become a new home to entertainment celebrities, basketball players and friends of the couple.

The Basketball Show: Upgrade also followed around San Beda College’s Nigerian center Sam Ekwe, who begins his days at 3 a.m. with two hours of silent prayer, followed by his morning necessities and a heavy day of classes, practices and games. On that particular Sunday, the Red Lions even trooped to Alabang to visit an orphanage, and attended Bible classes.

How well do you know your favorite players? The program will start posting baby pictures of known ballers, and you’ll have to guess who they are. There will also be a music video tracing the evolution of some of the new stars of professional basketball.

And in the spirit of Christmas, The Basketball Show is launching two major contests to give back to its avid fans. Molten Basketball Trivia asks one easy and one difficult question each week, and viewers are asked to write or e-mail their answers for a chance to win one leather and rubber Molten basketball each week. Molten is the most widely-used brand of basketball in major international and national leagues and associations all over the world.

An even more unique contest is exclusively sponsored by Warner Music Philippines. Viewers can send in the names of their favorite players, along with their favorite Warner music artist, album or song, and The Basketball Show: Upgrade will produce a personalized music video just for them each week. No other television program does that.

In the coming weeks, your favorite players sing their favorite Christmas carols, talk about their New Year’s resolutions, and open their homes to us. In other words, it’s gonna be a blast.

The Basketball Show: Upgrade is supported by Cebuana Lhuillier Pera Padala, Warner Music Philippines, Molten, Coca-Cola Export Corporation, Air21 and Vivian Sarabia World of Optics.