Kobe Paras looks up to dad Benjie in honing cage skills

MANILA, Philippines – Like father, like son.

Kobe Paras has made his father, former PBA star Benjie, proud after not only representing the country in the FIBA World Under-18 3x3 Championship in Jakarta, Indonesia but also topping the slam dunk competition against foes from powerhouse basketball countries.

"I'm proud of what he (Kobe) he has achieved," said the elder Paras, who emerged the league's first and only rookie MVP in 1989 before winning another MVP trophy exactly a decade later, in Thursday's briefing at the VIVA Communications office at the Tektite Building in Ortigas, Pasig.

Paras, a good-looking 15-year-old, 6-4 phenom from La Salle-Greenhills, said he owed everything to watching old videos of his father during his playing days in the pros where is a former five-time Mythical First teamer, 10-time All-Star and two-time All-Star MVP.

"I owe a lot to him (Benjie) and I learned a lot from the old videos of him playing in the PBA," said Kobe, who was two years old when his dad snared his second MVP.

Kobe, of course, is coming off a scintillating performance in Jakarta where he emerged the dunk champion by beating heavily favored opponents from the United States, Argentina and China.

Interestingly, Benjie also participated in slam dunk competitions during his college days as well as the PBA where teamed up with Elmer Lago to win the 1995 Slam Dunk Team champion.

But for Kobe, who is incidentally named after the Los Angeles Lakers' Kobe Bryant, nothing beats seeing and talking to his idol, recent Manila visitor LeBron James of the reigning two-time NBA champion Miami Heat.

"It's the best time of my life seeing him (James) because he's the player I'm looking up to aside from my dad," said Kobe, who also got his share of fame when he dunked over James in an exhibition game with the current NBA MVP at the MOA Arena a few months back.

"What I remembered him telling me that I'm following now was when he told me to keep my focus because all will be wasted if I don't focus," said Kobe.

Kobe, who is an incoming senior for the Greenies, said he hasn't decided yet whether to join 18-year-old brother Andre at University of the Philippines, or play somewhere else like Alvin Teng’s sons Jeric and Jeron, who played for Santo Tomas and La Salle, respectively.

"I haven't really made up my mind on what college I'll go to. We'll see next year," said Kobe, who was also accompanied by his stepmother Lyxen, whom he had two more brothers, Dean, 4, and Sam, 3.

A looker, Kobe also is entertaining the possibility of going showbiz just like his father, who has appeared in a lot of television sitcoms and movies including "Dunking Donato" where he played a slam-dunking player.

"If time permits, why not? But my priority now are my studies and basketball," he said.