Rice raves over ‘The Triggerman’

MANILA, Philippines -  It’s been seven years ago, yet former NBA star Glen Rice still couldn’t help but be excited when he recalled  a certain Filipino cager putting up a shooting clinic right in front of his eyes.

“We had a great time when I was here seven years ago,” the former Miami Heat and Los Angeles Laker said. “One of the things I remember was one of my teammates raining threes. I believe he goes by the nickname ‘Trigger.’”

“Allan Caidic!” he exclaimed immediately after remembering. “He was incredible, man!”

A prolific shooter himself, Rice visited the country in 2010 with fellow NBA greats Gary Payton, Mitch Richmond and Chris Webber.

This time though, he is alone. Rice, part of the Laker cast that went on to topple a stacked Portland Trail Blazers team and then eventually beat the Indiana Pacers for the 2000 NBA title, is in town for the NBA’s first-ever Filipino Heritage Week.

“It’s hard to forget guys like that,” the NBA champion shared with the press during a short chat at a restaurant in Taguig. 

In that memorable showcase, then billed as the “NBA Asia Challenge,” Caidic, who was with Rice in the Red team, piled up 54 points against the opposing White squad. In just 24 minutes of action, Rice registered 14 baskets from the rainbow territory.

“I’m a big fan of shooters and when you have guys shooting like he was that night,” the 6-foot-8 small forward said. 

True enough, a quick internet search would yield Rice being quoted saying “Trigger, trigger, trigger.”

“Triggerman” was Caidic’s iconic moniker in the PBA. He is the all-time leader in points and once registered a whopping 79 points, the most scored by a local in Asia’s first play-for-pay league.

Rice, for his part, was also a dead-shot in the NBA, having led the league in three-point percentage during the 1996-97 season.

The six-term veteran will also make an NBA Cares stop and join hoop fans in two game-viewing parties this weekend at Bonifacio High Street in Taguig.