MANILA – Being undersized is not stopping Ilonggos basketball guard Emman Monfort and volleybelle Ria “Buding” Duremdes from achieving their dreams of playing in big leagues in Manila.
The Mandurriao, Iloilo-native Monfort was recruited by the Ateneo Blue Eagles in 2006 and played there until 2012 before moving to the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA), where he played for eight years before being tapped as assistant coach for the NLEX Road Warriors.
“When I was recruited by Ateneo, I think it was a mixture of swerte and right timing,” Monfort said in an interview with Sports LANG podcast on Sunday night. “Dako nga bagay ang talent and hard work. If you have those two, you’ll be successful in any field.”
“Noong nasa Ateneo pa ako, may mga challenges din akong hinarap,” he added. “In my first two years with Ateneo, I was in Team A. Then I was relegated to Team B on my third year. But I just kept going and, eventually, nakabalik rin ako sa Team A.”
Monfort, who played for Barako Bull, Barangay Ginebra San Miguel Kings and the Road Warriors in the PBA, also said it is important for a player to be coachable, adaptive, prepared, and competitive, even against teammates.
“Dako na bagay para sa player na coachable ka and always a good soldier,” Monfort said. “You have to adapt your game to what your coach wants. You have to mold your game with that.”
“It is also important to stay ready at all times and also to outwork every single teammate or opponent,” he added. “Iron sharpens iron. If your coaches see your hard work, they will reward you with playing time.”
Meanwhile, Dumangas-native Duremdes said she is thankful to former Lady Tamaraws head coach Cesael delos Santos for taking a chance of her following her graduation from Central Philippine University Golden Lions.
“‘Yung akala mo kapag nasa probinsya ka, okay ka na, pero, pagdating mo sa Manila, kulang pa pala. Mas mataas ang standards,” Duremdes said. “Every training lagi akong kinakausap ni coach Shaq, (palagi) niya akong mino-motivate and then ina-apply ko ‘yun sa game.”
“Important din para sa player ‘yung hard work lalo na sa practice dahil kung ano ang training mo, siya ring (laro) mo,” added the Ilongga libero, who also played for Petron Blaze Spikers in the Philippine Superliga./PN
