SJ Belangel was not the tallest of players while growing up in Bacolod.
Being in a basketball hotbed like his province, of course, it would be hard for him to enter the paint. That is why growing up, the young floor general patterned his game to one of the best to ever do it — the 5-foot-9 Jimmy Alapag.
Alapag was Belangel’s Steph Curry.
“Back then, when I remember, pinapattern ko talaga kung gaano kalayo siya tumira ng three points,” Belangel bared to SMART Sports’ Hoops Life.
“For me, before there was Steph Curry, there was Jimmy Alapag.
“Tapos I remember, sinabi pa sa akin nun, ‘Ikaw ba si Jimmy Alapag para tumira ng ganun kalayo?’ So ganun talaga ako ka-fan ni Coach Jimmy when he was still playing for Talk ‘N Text and siyempre given na yung Gilas,” shared the 21-year-old.
Before going to Ateneo High, Belangel was a scoring demon, scoring 90-plus — or even 100 points — with ease.
Later on, he would steer both the Blue Eaglets and the Blue Eagles to UAAP championships.
But it was the 5-foot-10 guard’s miracle, off-balance, buzzer-beating triple against South Korea back on June 17 that made him go mainstream.
And Alapag knows that that moment was not a “lucky shot” nor an accident. For him, it was a product of sheer hard work.
“You deserve it, you hit that shot. I don’t think that’s by accident. You worked hard and you prepared yourself to represent the country. Enjoy it but also understand that there is still a lot of work to do. I’m a fan and I’m proud,” said the now 43-year-old Alapag, who also had his South Korea moment back in the 2013 FIBA Asia Cup.
“We talked about this a few months ago during Mikee Reyes’ camp. To see you playing well and striving well, a lot of responsibility comes in playing the point guard, but you are doing a good job,” he expressed.
“I want to encourage you to just keep working, keep leading. You’ve shown that you are capable of leading in that position, so I’m excited for you.”
Hearing those words from his childhood hero, Belangel feels extra motivated as Gilas head to the Belgrade Olympic Qualifying Tournament.
“He is one of the players I looked up to growing up. Nakaka-inspire at nakaka-motivate. Excited na ko mag-practice ulit.”
