FILE – Coach John Uichico and the NLEX Road Warriors during the PBA Philippine Cup. – PBA Images
It has been almost a decade since John Uichico last coached in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
And he acknowledges that a lot has changed since then.
“Football is really different now,” the former TNT coach told the Inquirer recently. “I [a] Head [coach] “A few years ago.”
READ: PBA: John Uichico named NLEX coach
“System-wise, today’s game has a lot more ball movement and an emphasis on the 3-point shot, and it’s become too much,” he added with a laugh.
Nearly eight years after retiring from coaching, Uichico will take the reins of the NLEX Road Warriors in the 49th PBA season.
The 62-year-old leader was officially given the keys to the Road Warriors franchise in June and while he has seen big changes in the way the game is played, he feels he has largely caught up with modern basketball.
After all, he was close to the game.
9 wins
A nine-time PBA champion, Uichico is a frequent call-up to the national team coaching staff and has served as assistant to Gilas Philippines head coaches Tim Cone and Chot Reyes. He also served as assistant to Frankie Lim at NLEX before being appointed to the top job.
He also oversees the national coaching clinics for Samahang Basketball NG Pilipinas.
“I [a head coach for some time]”But I never really left the game of basketball,” Uichico said. “Some of the coaches [when they’re out]”They were really out there, but I’m fortunate to be able to stay in a basketball environment and be where the real action is.”
For Uichico, learning, and in his case, relearning, isn’t difficult, it’s just different.
“[N]”Yeah… I’ll have the final say from now on,” he said, “but other than that, in terms of training and match planning, I’ve never really been away from that position anyway.”
With his background, Uichico is expected to lead NLEX to greater heights as the Road Warriors have only made the playoffs once before, last season when they made it to the quarterfinals in the last Philippine Cup.
READ: PBA: John Uichico admits uncertainty in interim head coach role
The best finish the franchise has ever reached was a semi-final four finish in an all-Filipino showcase in the summer of 2018.
The Road Warriors will be led by Robert Bolick this season, with Kevin Alas expected to take over later in the season (assuming his recovery is OK). The club also has recruited former Memphis Grizzlies swingman Mike Henry for the upcoming Governors Cup.
Huichico knows he has a lot of work to do, but he’s ready to take on the challenge, building on the players selected in last week’s rookie draft.
“We have the draft picks, so we’ll know pretty quickly if they can fit right away. The first-round pick (Jonnel Policarpio) isn’t a big deal, but the lower picks are questionable,” he said.
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Besides Policarpio, who was selected sixth overall, NLEX also drafted Filipino-Canadian big man Brandon Ramirez, guards Zairus Torres and Denzel Wong, and forward Adrian Partosa during its annual selection. INQ
