Philippine Basketball Association teams started practices Tuesday, August 25 months after the league suspended all activities because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Alaska Aces, who have kept themselves in shape through online group activities, said they are only too happy to finally take to the basketball court again at their practice facility at the Gatorade Hoops Center, Shaw Bouelvard, Mandaluyong.
“We are excited to be back (on the basketball court) with our small group practices. Again the idea is slowly we will progress to full team practices and hopefully we will be able to have one conference this year. And we are praying that will happen soon,” said Alaska Head Coach Jeff Cariaso in a phone interview.
The months-long quarantine has left everyone with plenty of time for introspection and assessment. The Alaska mentor said he has learned to assess the most important things in life.
“My biggest observation that I got from all of this is, Number 1 health is wealth, right? I’ve always said that. So taking care of yourself, you know. Making sure you eat properly also. Taking care of yourself is doing it for your family. Everything we do naman is for our family. So I think you should take care of yourself more and that in itself is already taking care of your family,” said Cariaso.
“Do it so that you and your family can be safe. In the end all these safety precautions we do every day: Wear a mask; stay at home as much as possible. Let’s do it. We are doing it for ourselves and our families anyway. So let’s do that.”
The Alaska mentor said that to pass the time everyone could maybe spend the time constructively like learning to do something new.
“During that time when we don’t have so much freedom let’s do something that we’ve been wanting to do. Maybe take up a hobby. Maybe improve yourself work-wise. Maybe meet with people via Zoom. People you haven’t seen in a while. There’s a lot you can do. Let’s not let this hold us down,” said Cariaso.
Thankfully, the long lockdown is over and PBA players can now go out of their homes and work out in their practice facilities.
The Aces, as well as other PBA teams, will be cautious in their approach. The Aces will limit their activities to just four players at a time who will only perform dribbling and shooting drills.
The Aces, like the other PBA teams, will resume practices. But the activities will be conducted carefully and deliberately to ensure the health, safety and well-being of everyone concerned.