When dreams come true

There are several ways to welcome the New Year which has a different meaning to those who follow the Gregorian, Hebrew or Chinese Zodiac calendars. In the Gregorian calendar, it’s the year 2026 Anno Domini, the 26th year of the third millennium and the 21st century. In the Hebrew calendar, it’s the year 5786 since the creation of the world and the cycle began on Sept. 22, 2025 and ends on Sept. 11, 2026. In the Chinese Zodiac, it’s the Year of the Fire Horse which starts on Feb. 17, 2026 and concludes on Feb. 5, 2027. The spiritual significance of the Jewish celebration of 5786 is God’s call for “heaven touching earth” or the upliftment of humanity for a divine purpose leading to an awakening, breakthroughs, new beginnings, progress and rebuilding relationships.

Someone who expects a boom year in 5786 or 2026 is Joe Betancourt, a wealthy Texas financial whiz with a rich resume of basketball championships as a player, coach and sponsor. In 1997, he visited Manila as a Charlotte Hornets scout to bring Johnny Abarrientos to the NBA. He met with coach Tim Cone, Anton Montinola and Abarrientos to work out the details of the move from the PBA to the NBA but the deal fizzled out when Hornets coach Dave Cowens opted to trade for David Wesley to fill the point guard slot. To this day, Betancourt dreams of opening the door for the first full-blooded Filipino home-grown player to see action in the NBA. That dream could come true this year.

Betancourt has pursued the purchase of an NBA franchise for over two years with Middle East and Indian partners and it may finally be consummated on Sept. 1, 2026, if stars align. “When it happens, I will be capping a playing and coaching career with the ultimate chapter that is being in rare air,” said Betancourt, a former Saudi Arabian and Mexican national team coach who piloted the US to the Jones Cup title in 1997. “The promise I made to the Philippines from way back has always stayed on my mind, being so close with Abarrientos and now, I feel I can attain that honor for it has been a long two-year journey to acquire an NBA franchise.”

Betancourt said he has closely followed Cone’s career and is impressed with his Gilas achievements. “I try to watch Gilas as much as possible and I noticed Kevin Quiambao, who like Kai Sotto, has NBA possibilities,” he said. Under NBA rules, Quiambao may be signed by an NBA team as a free agent even if he never declared for the draft since he’s now 24. Sotto, 23, declared for the NBA draft in 2022 but wasn’t picked so he, too, may be signed as a free agent.

“5786-2026 will be fabulous,” said Betancourt who turned 75 last November. “My wishes for the year are peace on earth, continued good health, acquiring an NBA franchise, a native Filipino in the NBA, a healthy shoulder for my daughter Tiffany so she can play in the WTA this year, buy the Miss Universe organization, the realization of Elon Musk’s SpaceX IPO, another NCAA women’s championship for my dear friend coach Geno Auriemma with the University of Connecticut and to be forever young. I’m eternally grateful to G-D to have transitioned from the basketball court to business. This year will be one of doing more of mitzvot (good deeds in God’s name). And as the saying goes, quoique ce soit, on va gagner or whatever it is, we’ll win.”