Blackwater import welcomes challenge

MANILA, Philippines - Blackwater import Chris Charles is ready to take the challenge of turning the Elite’s fortunes around in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup starting Jan. 27 and said the other day he can’t wait to play in the league known for its passionate fans.

Charles, 33, flew in from Bangkok to begin training with Blackwater two weeks ago. He had just led the Bangkok Hi-Tech team to the ABL title and was fixing to return home in Wisconsin for the holidays when Blackwater team owner Dioceldo Sy called. Sy took an overnight trip to Bangkok to sign up Charles and two days later, the 7-1 center got a message from Asi Taulava inviting him to play for NLEX.

“Asi and I played against each other in the ABL two seasons back,” said Charles. “When I was at Villanova many years ago, I went to Pete Newell’s big man’s camp in Las Vegas where guys like Asi, Sam Dalembert and Dasagana Diop showed up. At the time, I still didn’t know Asi. I’d already committed to Blackwater when Asi got in touch. Asi’s a real inspiration doing what he does at his age.”

Charles said playing in the PBA is like a dream come true. “I was in Manila when we played San Miguel Beer in the ABL,” he said. “I’ve played all over the world but Manila is special. The fans are amazing and you don’t get access to top management anywhere else. With Blackwater, it’s different. Boss Dioceldo even took me to Sunday service with his family. I know the PBA is a physical league, that top-caliber imports are coming for the second conference and Blackwater didn’t win a single game in the Philippine Cup. My focus is to work as hard as I can to get better every day, to learn from coach Leo (Isaac) until his system is second nature. I’m staying to practice during the holidays. So far, it’s been great. We’re working on pressure defense, zone offense. I’m excited to show what we can do as a team.”

Charles said Kia import Peter John Ramos will be a tough opponent but he won’t back down from battling the 7-4 giant. “I like to play face up and use my quickness against bigger guys,” he said. “I like working my way to the basket. I can mix it up, hitting medium-range jumpers, posting up, whatever. If the big guys think they can bump me out of position, then I’ll use my quickness to get around them. Am I an offensive or defensive player? I’m a little of both. I’ve seen Ramos play. I think I can take him.”

Charles said he tries to play like Tim Duncan, Kevin Garnett and Bill Russell. “I’ve always admired Russell in the way he carried himself on the court, dominating the rebounds and blocking shots,” he said. “At Villanova, I didn’t get to play much. It’s a guard-oriented team. I was invited to transfer to a school where I could play more but I stuck it out with coach Jay (Wright). I invested in his program. I knew sooner or later, my time would come. I ended up playing all over the world. One of my best friends Randy Foye, who plays in the NBA, is happy that I’m still playing the game. We keep in touch and when we’re free during the summer, we work out together.”

Charles said he grew up a strong Christian because his grandfather Lewis was a pastor with the Bethlehem Baptist Church in Milwaukee. He was raised by a single mother Linda, a social worker. Charles has a half-brother Langston, 19. “I’m hoping my mom and brother can come out to watch me play,” he said. “They’ve never been abroad. I’m excited for them to watch me play for the first time as a pro.”

Charles said his most memorable basketball moments came when he played on two champion teams in Syria and on the Bangkok squad that claimed the ABL title last season. The two-time ABL MVP will be reunited with his Bangkok teammate Jerick Canada of Adamson at Blackwater. Sy said the team will undergo a shakeup in the offseason, bringing in Canada, Gio Ciriacruz and Gilbert Bulawan.

To get the players in shape way ahead of the Commissioner’s Cup, Sy hired John Aquino of House of Pain fame to be the team’s full-time strength, conditioning and skills coach. Aquino is the personal trainer of Taulava, James Yap, P. J. Simon, Jimmy Alapag, Jeff Chan and Beau Belga. “On my first day with the team two weeks ago, I found the players to be only 60 percent of their best condition,” said Aquino who used to work with the Petron, now San Miguel Beer, team. “Chris is working extra hard to get in shape. He’s responding positively to what we ask him to do. He’s deceptively strong for a guy who’s lanky.”

Isaac said he couldn’t be happier with Charles. “In the first conference, we had guys who thought they could be go-to guys and weren’t,” he said. “We struggled because we had so many players whom we thought could bring us to the next level. Now, we’ve got a go-to guy in Chris. He has a high basketball IQ, knows how to pass, can score, drive, post up and defend. This is the guy we need.”

Sy said the honeymoon is over at Blackwater. “We were last in the All-Filipino,” he said. “We don’t want to be last again. We like players who can give us a lot of intangibles, who do things that don’t show up in the stats sheet, like diving for loose balls, hustling, harassing. We want guys to be hard workers so they’ve got to be in shape. Like Manny (Pacquiao) who trains for a 12-round fight like it’s for 24 rounds, we want our guys to train for a 48-minute game like it’s for 96. Signing up Jerick was like drafting Chris Banchero. Jerick and Chris played together in the ABL like Stockton and Malone.”

  Sy said holdovers Bryan Faundo and Brian Heruela stood out for Blackwater in the Philippine Cup. He also made special mention of Jason Ballesteros for living up to his role as a team-oriented center. Aquino said at the moment, the players who are ahead in the conditioning department are Chris Timberlake and Bambam Gamalinda.