RONALD TUBID has become a permanent fixture on Terrafirma’s bench—but he’s not in a Dyip uniform.
Tubid’s been the Dyip’s team manager since October last year and has been loving his new job, although admitting at times that he’d gone disoriented during games where the Dyip were in trouble and wanted to join the action on the floor.
“I’m already 40 and I don’t wake up the same way when I was still a player,” Tubid, a nine-time Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) champion, told BusinessMirror on Sunday. “But the player in me remains strong in my heart—but I have a new task now.”
The former University of the East aggressive swingman’s happy with his new job.
“Being a team manager easily got into my system,” said the 16-year veteran in the pro league who took over from Joe Lipa in October last year. “I was given the opportunity to handle the management task from being one of the assistant coaches late last year.”
What’s good with Tubid who still packs the game in his legs is that as team manager, he gets to join the Dyip during practice sessions.
“It’s easy to deal with the players because they know I think, breathe and act as a player,” he said. “They know they’ll be fine with me as their team manager. But the challenge is how to form a competitive team given a certain given budget.”
Tubid’s background as a Banking and Finance student at UE has come in handy for the ex-Red Warrior who had as college teammates James Yap and Paul Artadi.
“Defense is one of my major requirements in getting a player,” he said. “That’s what we envision for our team—to invest solidly on defense,” he said.
One of the biggest challenges that comes with his new role is how to draw the best out of a player.
“As a team manager, the challenging part is how to encourage and develop a player, to bring out the best from him,” said Tubid, one of six former PBA players who are currently managers of their respective teams—Paolo Bugia (Phoenix), Gabby Cui (TNT), Alvin Patrimonio (Magnolia), Gee Abanilla (SMB) and Dickie Bachmann (Alaska).
The Covid-19 pandemic tolled on Terrafirma—just like on every team in the league—and Tubid admitted he, too, got the virus recently but has fully recovered.
“I had a high fever for only one day and after isolation, I’m cleared now,” he said.
Training for the Dyip has returned to virtual sessions and all the Dyip wanted to accomplish while the Governors’ Cup remains suspended indefinitely, according to Tubid, are for everyone to stay in shape, recover from injuries and polish the team’s playbook.
“At 1-4 win-loss, we want to be optimistic of our chances once the games resume,” he said.