It was like having the best of both worlds for Beau Belga.
For him, it was a reunion of sorts with a couple of people on Monday night. First, he is again reporting to Gilas Pilipinas, with whom he last played for back in 2014 in the FIBA Asia Cup in China.
And second – and more importantly – Belga was reunited with Yeng Guiao, his head coach with the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters, where they won two championships together.
“Nakaka-miss. Nakaka-miss yung sistema, plus yung atmosphere ng ensayo. Tapos yung pagtetelepono ni coach Yeng during practice,” said the 31-year-old big man with a chuckle.
Their bond is truly unique; when Guiao left the Elasto Painters back in 2016 for the NLEX Road Warriors, Belga has always been vocal of how much he misses his mentor.
But despite spending little time together prior to Monday, the familiarity has never faded away. And for Belga, that is what he thinks will be their weapon for the 2018 Asian Games.
Guiao, Belga, and the Elasto Painters’ main core will have another run, as they are tasked to represent the Philippines in the quadriennial meet hosted by Indonesia later this August.
“Siguro, kasi most of the guys are familiar with each other,” Belga said.
And Belga doesn’t see any chemistry issues with the other players such as Stanley Pringle, Poy Erram, Christian Standhardinger, and Gilas Cadets stars in Kobe Paras and Ricci Rivero.
“Hindi naman mahirap pakisamahan yung mga bago, sina Stan, Kobe, Ricci. Sa’min naman ‘di naman kami mahirap pakisamahan mga Rain or Shine boys.
“And kami naman dito, dahil alam namin yung sistema, pwede kaming i-approach kung may tanong sila, para lang hindi ma-confuse, hindi mahirapan,” added the 10-year veteran.
The team has seven more days to prepare for the Asian Games before flying to Indonesia. And for Belga, he thinks that everything will turn out fine even with the time constraints.
“Yung mga taong yun, talented naman eh. So isama mo yun sa sistema ni coach Yeng, mag-gel, katulad ng pinag-usapan kanina, kailangan namin, sa tingin ko may tsansa.”
