FORTHSKY’S SECOND ACT
Forthsky Padrigao is an integral part of University of Santo Tomas’ (UST) rise in the UAAP Season 87 men’s basketball tournament.
And the transferee from Ateneo is making a point by not scoring too many of them.
“I think I’ve matured more when I accepted what my role is,” Padrigao told the Inquirer after helping the Tigers whip the Eagles, 74-64, and end a decade of futility against the Ateneo program.
“[At] my very core, I’m a point guard,” he added.
The last time Padrigao took the court in the UAAP, averaged 11.0 points, 4.36 rebounds, 5.5 assists and 2.36 steals per game. And while those numbers secured for Padrigao a Mythical Five slot and were instrumental in the Blue Eagles’ Season 85 title, they were also the basis for criticisms that he was looking too hard for his shots.
A year’s residency and two UAAP games later, there has been a change in his outlook.
“It comes with being matured in the games and the UAAP scene and I’m happy that I can help my teammates and the team, in general,” Padrigao said.
Padrigao’s 5.5 points per game wouldn’t be so remarkable until you pair them with his 8.0 assists and 4.5 rebounds per game.
It’s still two games, a small sample size.
But assistant coach Jeric Fortuna, who was a quarterback for the last UST team that reached the final and was generally known for being the quintessential pass-first point guard, says Padrigao has put a lot of focus on improving his playmaking.
“We’ve been talking in practice and our trips and I shared with him my experiences under coach Pido,” Fortuna told the Inquirer.
“With Forthsky, you see a level of maturity in him that I didn’t need to say much,” the soft-spoken Fortuna added. “He’s really a student of the game, he knows how to approach it so I’ve shared my experiences with him so he can, kind of, relate to what’s happened before.”
I’m surrounded by scoring teammates and I just want to really maximize the talent and the potential of our team
—FORTHSKY PADRIGAO, University of Santo Tomas
2-0 start
Padrigao credits Fortuna for a lot of his improvement.
“He watches film every time and every time coach Jeric sees something wrong, he immediately tells me. That’s a big help for me, in terms of really learning the game of basketball,” he said.
Padrigao’s new approach will be put to a test again when UST takes on Adamson on Sunday at 3:30 p.m. at Mall of Asia Arena.
Can he continue ignoring the itch of his trigger finger and focus on getting UST’s stable of scorers their shots?
Because so far, that has been the key for the Tigers’ 2-0 start.
“It’s easy for us to know our roles, we just need to go to our spots and Forthsky already knows where to pass the ball,” Tigers marksman Nic Cabañero said. “He trusts us a lot and we like him as our pass-first point guard.”
“He was a scoring guard in Ateneo but it’s different here, everyone can produce … He’s getting very matured so I really want him as my teammate. He knows what he’s doing,” added the UST senior.
For now, Padrigao has no problem giving way to his teammates in order to achieve the goal of leading the Tigers back to the Final Four.
“I’m surrounded by scoring teammates and I just want to really maximize the talent and the potential of our team,” he said. “That’s what I’m trying to focus on, and that’s also my job; to create for them and set them up for points.”
How long he continues to do that could end up determining how far UST goes this season. INQ
