When the TNT Katropa held a two-week training camp in Lithuania early December, rookie Sidney Onwubere approached incoming third-year pro Troy Rosario. The soft-spoken forward thanked Rosario that baffled the latter.
“Nagulat ako nung nasa Lithuania kami, bigla niyang sinabi, ‘Kuya salamat!’. ‘Saan?’, sabi ko,” recalled the 25-year-old Rosario.
“Tapos pinakita niya sa akin yung sapatos niya.”
Still in crisp condition, Onwubere showed him a pair of gray Nike Hypershift shoes that Rosario used to own.
“Naalala ko pa yung shoes na yun e, yung gray na Nike. Sabi ko, ‘Sa iyo pala napunta yan!’,” furthered Rosario.
“Maganda yung siya nakakuha!”
Sharing his blessings to aspiring cagers has been one of Rosario’s goals ever since he became pro. And this is his way of giving back as he himself was a struggling dreamer back when he was with National University.
“Nung college ako, nagdadala sila kuya Kelly [Williams], kuya Danny [Ildefonso], at kuya Rommel Adducul ng sapatos sa bahay nila coach Eric [Altamirano],” reflected Rosario, who used to live in Altamirano’s house.
“Bago mapunta sa mga ibang players, kami muna ang pumipili. Minsan napipili ko na yung mga gusto ko na sapatos bago ma-share sa iba,” he quipped.
One of the favorite pairs he received came from TNT big man Williams. A year after graduating college, they became teammates.
In his third year, Rosario has become one of the cornerstones of the Manny V. Pangilinan-owned franchise. Moreover, he has become a mainstay in Gilas Pilipinas. With this can an influx of endorsements that included shoe deals.
Rosario though is not a shoe collector. So instead of hoarding the free shoes he gets, he instead chose to give them away — giving back to the game that has been kind to him in the process.
“Well, madami kasi akong extra na sapatos e. Hindi ko naman magagamit lahat yun di ba? Bago pa naman at parang dalawang beses ko lang nagagamit,” said Rosario, who is a size 14. “Yung anak ni coach Eric [Anton Altamirano] humingi sa akin. E wala naman akong naluluma na sapatos e, sobrang daming binibigay na sapatos sa akin ng Titan.
“Sabi ko sana makatulong na lang itong mga sapatos na ‘to sa player na mabibigyan ko. Parang binabalik ko lang yung nagawa sa akin ng ibang player dati.”
And one of the lucky recipients was Onwubere.
“Si kuya Troy sobrang bait niya. Nung sa Slam [Draft Suite] pa lang, sabi niya, ‘Sana sa amin ka mapunta’,” narrated the EAC alumnus.
As fate would have it, the 23-year-old forward, who was drafted by Phoenix at eighth, eventually ended up with TNT.
“Talagang wine-welcome niya ako. Nung first practice namin ko pa lang siya nakausap ng face-to-face, sobrang bait niya talaga,” Onwubere shared about Rosario.
On the other hand, Rosario hopes that Onwubere will have a stellar pro career. In addition, when Onwubere makes it, he is asking the rookie to continue this tradition of giving back to the next generation.
“Sana yung nagawa ko sa kanya masuklian niya sa iba. Sana next time siya na yung nagbibigay ng sapatos,” shared Rosario.
“Oo naman siyempre! Baka yung mapagbigyan ko, yun yung next TNT player,” said Onwubere.
