Why Chris Pacana?

Whenever someone asks me who my favorite PBA player is, I proudly answer, 'Chris Pacana'. For some, who are not PBA fanatic, they would usually have the follow-up question, 'Who is Chris Pacana?'. And for some who are Barangay Ginebra Kings (BGK) fanatic, they would have the follow-up question, 'Why Chris Pacana?'. Hmmm, now I ask myself, 'Why Chris Pacana?'. Let me tell you the story on how I become Chris' #1 fan.

I believe it was 1996 when I first loved watching PBA. I cheered for Johnny 'The Flying A' Abarrientos then of Alaska MilkMen. Yes! I am one of the BGK haters then. I remember I always argue with BGK fans, ha ha. Johnny was hailed the Most Valuable Player at that time. And yes, I don't like Vince 'The Prince' Hizon. But, for some reasons, probably after the death of my father, I stopped watching PBA.

Then, I watched, not whole-heartedly, the championship between San Miguel Beermen (SMB) and BGK. I was amazed on how they rallied from 0-2 to 4-2 to win the championship. And, I find it fantastic as well on how JayJay 'The Fast' Helterbrand delivered the 2 crucial free throws to win the game. (See JayJay Helterbrand - Second Best? for the video). It was then that I become an avid BGK fan.

However, I still don't have the eagerness to watch. The next BGK game I've watched, I believe, was their WildCard game against Air21. It was January 18, 2007. BGK lost. Sad. But, I don't get frustrated, I'm not that PBA addict yet, ha ha.

Then, I found out from a classmate from my masteral class about making money out of blogging. So, I tried making one. The blog should be something catchy. It should be something that of great interest. Hence, I made my blog about basketball. After creating the blog, I need to advertise it. Thus, I put a comment on one of the news updates at PBA Online. But, making such advertisement ain't enough. I made myself a member of the site's forum where I came to know a lot of PBA fanatics. And since I am a BGK fan, my first post on the forum is on the BGK thread where I met Thania. Then, all else follows. We are now the BGK JAMSHIPS. I am now a certified Kabarangay.

In my first blog, most of my write-ups were about JayJay. I also had special write up about Mark 'The Furious' Caguioa. Why not? They are the star players of BGK. And it become easy advertising my blog since I write about them. I joined JayJay's yahoo groups. I even joined some other BGK fansites. And it was really overwhelming since I find it soooo easy searching for JayJay's pictures and videos. I remembered my dream then was just to have a picture with JayJay, ha ha. And yes, I envy those who already have one. I really wonder how come they got to have picture with JayJay after the ball game. But then, I didn't watch the ball game live. I usually just watch the game on TV5. I just had my early time out from the office (good that we have our flexi schedule), or I simply get updates from my BGK JAMSHIPS.

In one of BGK's game, I spotted Chris Pacana. He made a 3 pointer that time. Then, I asked myself, 'Who is Chris Pacana?'. I don't know, but HONESTLY, I got to admire him from that moment. Then, I really become interested on getting to know him. At first I thought he was a rookie, only to find out that he had played for the Coca Cola Tigers in 2006, sit out for one conference, and now playing in BGK. My eagerness to know him doesn't stop there. I began searching for articles about him, and of course, pictures. It really saddened me that I find it soooo hard searching for his photos. Exactly opposite of my search on JayJay's. Oh, I remember I found one from a BGK fansite. But then, I felt so bad about the comments. Someone was asking who Chris was, then one of the moderators answered that he doesn't know Chris, and that he doesn't care. *ouch ouch ouch* It was followed by another sarcastic comment by one of the moderators. *teary eyed* Know what? I NEVER visited that site again.

But that doesn't stop me from being his fan. I enjoyed watching the game with him playing on the court. Whether he turns the ball over or he makes a basket. I just love seeing him play. Months passed by. I've been mentioning him in my blog posts. I even quoted that he could be 'the next big thing in PBA point guards'. I become active in posting in his thread at PBA Online. It's as if I own the thread, ha ha.

It simply frustrates me that a lot of BGK fans had been, uhm, hating him. It nearly breaks my heart when someone would throw sarcastic remarks about him. I get so annoyed when someone pinpointed him as the cause of BGK's loss. I simply hate them. I just thought, when JayJay or MC would commit mistakes, I'm sure no one would condemn them. But, when its Chris, even the smallest mistake, they would surely make a big deal out of it, neglecting everything he did for the team. Well, thanks to those rude remarks, I got the courage, no, I got the inspiration to create my post entitled Chris Pacana. It feels good, I mean, it feels great. But of course, Chris' detractors would be blind and deaf about everything. They simply continue bullying my favorite PBA player, and it really makes me sad. Good that I find two or three co-Chris Pacana fanatics.

One of them told me that he, too, knew a lot who had been so cruel about Chris, especially when Chris became part of the BGK roster. He even told me that Chris' name wasn't even placed in their list. *ouch ouch ouch* Well, at first I would like to believe that missing Chris' name from the BGK roster was an honest mistake. But, seeing Junthy Valenzuela, who become a part of the BGK line up after Chris', appeared on their list makes me think twice. *hu hu hu, crying out loud* Just the same, I NEVER visited that site again. They're sooo mean.

One of my co-Chris Pacana fan sent me photos of Chris during his Coke days. And since I would want to share it with other Chris Pacana fans, I created a separate blog for Chris on August 25, 2008. And this is that blog. I'm so proud of this one. I searched for articles about Chris to know him more, specially about his basketball history. Those articles made me admire him more and more. I got inspired by Chris everytime I would be watching him, thus, I have my own posts. And what he showed in the finals series is really one hell of a job. Uhm, though scarce, I had trivias about him. I would really wanna fill this section. But sorry guys, I'm just a plain fan like you are. Chris and I are not connected with each other. Having an interview with him was just a dream for me. I created the Message Board section as well for Chris' fans to leave their message. Although, Chris isn't aware of this blog, not until the BGK Victory Party, I hoped that he could drop by and read your messages for him. After all, searching Chris Pacana on the web would return this blog's URL. Ü And of course, I fed up this blog with a lot of pictures and videos. Grab 'em if you wanted to. As one of my co-Chris Pacana fan had told me, it would be heartwarming knowing that someone would want to grab Chris' pictures. It only means that he, too, is a Chris Pacana fanatic.

Wait. My story ain't over. Having my BGK JAMSHIPS, they promised me that me and Chris would have a picture together. That was just a dream that I once knew, ha ha, feels like singing. It was September 26, 2008, one month after I created this blog, that I got the chance to see Chris in person. I was really hesitant at first. I even told them to just give my slot to other BGK JAMSHIPS. I don't know. I was just afraid that Chris might be snob, or that Chris might not appreciate this blog, or that Chris might be too lazy to hold on to my note, or... I was just scared about our first meeting. Cold feet, that is. Good that they insisted. Good that I come. The feeling was great. I cried. Yes, I did. I cried for joy. I never expected that Chris would be soooo nice. It was a dream come true. I could not ask for more. *more details to tell about this meeting later on*

So, that's it. Why Chris Pacana? Because he captured my admiration from the very first time I set my eyes on him. Because his haters inspires me. Because his mere basketball history is admirable. Because I admire his basketball skills. And most of all, because he is the nicest PBA player I ever knew, at least. *ha ha, I never intend to know other PBA player*

Again and again, I would be PROUD TO BE CHRIS' #1 FAN!