There was that eagerness on RJ Abarrientos’ part to defend Milos Teodosic the best he could when the young Gilas Pilipinas squared up against world power Serbia in the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Belgrade.
“Gusto ko siya pressure-in, talagang gusto ko agawin ‘yung bola sa kanya,” he told 2OT, presented by SMART Wednesday.
The same goes with his backcourt partner SJ Belangel, raring to get the opportunity to see how well he would fare against the 34-year-old.
“Hindi siya first five nun e. Pero andun pa rin ako sa floor nung nagpa-sub na ‘yung isang player nila. Tapos unang tinanong ko kaagad, sino’ng kukuha sa kanya. Parang, gusto [kong] tapatan siya, ‘di ba. Saang level na ba kami.”
Teodosic remains one of the most celebrated figures in the global hoops scene, so much so that Gilas Men program director and head coach Tab Baldwin advised his guards to learn as much as they could from him.
And both Abarrientos and Belangel, 21 and 22 years old, respectively, realized why the multi-decorated playmaker is so revered.
“Sa’kin ino-observe ko si Milos talaga. Hindi naman siya athletic, unang-una. Pero grabe siya mag-read, ‘yung basahin ‘yung mga options ng play nila. Kaya hirap na hirap ako,” the nephew of PBA great Johnny Abarrientos said.
“Gusto ko pahirapan talaga, kaso parang sa kanya hindi nagbabago e. Parang, ‘Sino ka ba? Ang kulit mo ah.’ Parang ganon,” he added, smiling.
Belangel attested to such. “Sa’kin nga, pinressure ko siya, binigyan ako agad ng isang ganon e,” he said, moving his elbow to re-enact what he had gotten from the 2016 Olympic silver medalist. “Nagulat ako.”
What Belangel was truly in awe of was the veteran smarts of Teodosic, most especially the composure he saw from him during crunch time when Gilas threatened to wield the upset ax on the world no. 5.
“Grabe talaga ‘yung composure niya sa sarili. Tapos ‘yung tiwala ng team sa kanya during those times na ‘yun, nung dumikit kami,” he recalled.
The Filipino dribblers, from 16 down, got ahead by a solitary point, 74-73, following Abarrientos’ lay-up off a drive with 3:30 left to play. But things only got harder for him, no thanks to the former EuroLeague MVP.
“Grabe. Ganun si Milos. ‘Yung composure niya, sabi nga ni SJ, grabe ‘yung composure niya sa laro. Lumamang tayo e … Pero pagkuha niya ng bola, talagang hinanap niya ‘ko — nung pag-shoot ko, ‘yun ‘yun e. Sabi ko, ‘Patay.'”
Teodosic took over for his side by facilitating the offense, dishing key assists to Boban Marjanovic to put Serbia back up again. They won, 83-76.
The former Los Angeles Clipper finished with 13 points on three triples, on top of six assists and four rebounds.
The loss was tough for Gilas since they had chances to score a massive win in a stage as grand as the OQT. But the two are just honored to have gotten the chance to pick up so many lessons from Teodosic.
“It’s an honor na makatapat siya and play against him. Saludo kami ni RJ.
“Marami talaga kaming natutunan sa laro na ‘yun sa kanya — the way he plays, the way he’s composed during those moments,” said Belangel.
