Jimmy Alapag, a former professional basketball player in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA), is set to join an American professional basketball team, Sacramento Kings, as ESPN reported. The Kings competes as a member of the Western Conference’s Pacific Division in the National Basketball Association (NBA).
“I cherish the opportunity to continue my education in coaching,” Alapag added. “I’ve been blessed to have worked with a lot of great coaches in the PBA and with Gilas Pilipinas and I’m excited to learn more from the coaches in the NBA.”
Currently, he is the head coach of San Miguel Alab Pilipinas of the ASEAN Basketball League (ABL) and the San Miguel Beermen assistant coach in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). Now, he will have the opportunity of a lifetime of learning from some of the best basketball minds in the world when he joins the Sacramento Kings.
Alapag is reported to be an assistant for the 2019 Summer League in Las Vegas, Nevada, ESPN shares.
“Being near the Bay Area, there will be a lot of Filipino fans there so I’m also excited to see some of our kababayans there as well,” Alapag mentioned. “But more than that, I’m eager to learn and then get to share and pass on the knowledge I get from there to the players and coaches I work with back home.”
Apparently, he was in touch with a long-time friend who helped him advance his early coaching career. “I stayed in touch with Vlade Divac who is the Chairman of the FIBA Players’ Commission, where I’ve been a member of for the past four years,” Alapag said.
Evidently, it was quite an easy decision for him to accept the offer when his old friend, Divac, invited him.
“After our campaign ended in the ABL, I got to talk to him again. I told him I needed to learn more about coaching because I’ve only been a head coach for two years and he brought up the idea that I should come in and learn from the Sacramento Kings where he is also the general manager, ” Alapag shares.
From July 5 to 15, the 30 teams will be competing in the 15th NBA Summer League where the teams will be playing four preliminary games each. On July 15, a champion will be crowned as the top eight are seeded at the knockout tournament.
Before they head to Las Vegas, Alapag will be joining the Kings’ training camp in Sacramento on June 26.
Have any thoughts on Alapag training under an NBA team?
