At some point in time we have that flaming desire to win. There’s no denying to the fact we’d all love to be a winner. Not the haughty type, but the one who remains humble even with a victory. Any team in any sport, whether it is football or ice hockey or basketball, has eyes for the grand prize. Winning it all is not a piece of cake as it requires the right amount of persistence and dedication along the long road one has to take, not to mention suppressing the slumps in between.
What happens exactly when you get the coveted victory, sweeter than having to deal with some little thing you can brush off in a few years? Let us take the case of the DLSU Green Archers MBT, the recently-crowned champions of the UAAP senior men’s basketball division. If up until now you still think their win was a fluke, take time to look back at their struggles early in the first round which was then followed by a resurgence in form of a nine-game winning stretch halted only by a last-second shot by the UST Growling Tigers to give them the series lead. Everyone followed up with their own predictions of what can happen in the next two games of the epic Taft vs. Espana debacle for which is one for the record books. A percentage of the UAAP-bound populace said it would end with a two-game sweep by the Tigers, others thought it would force a Game 3, and the Archers would win the next two games according to the hopeful ones. Granted were the second and third predictions as the series indeed went to three games, and the mighty Archers did win its first championship since 2007 after rallying later in the match-up. A random piece of history: I was only in my freshman year of high school at the time the Taft-based squad had its taste of the heralded trophy.
Six years have passed and a lot of things have changed since then. We’ve all witnessed a dynasty bannered by five straight championships from a team deemed unstoppable the last few years. Everyone predicted there would be a six-peat for them, but it slowly dissolved into a fantasy following a lackluster performance for majority of the season. Some who claimed to be “fans” only because of their dynasty flamed out one by one only to root for another winning team. Some people, however, stayed loyal to the team even in the hardest times and I admire them for that. When the Archers went 5-9 (including a dubious eight losses in nine games in the second round) back in 2011, my optimism was embattered over the heartbreaks I had to endure while watching the games. As a fan, watching the endless litany of games-we-should’ve-won-but-we-blew-it made it unbearable to the eyes as did my mind for the latter accumulated nothing but pessimism thoughts.
Fast forward to 2013. The crown is back to Taft. Everyone is happy. Fireworks on cue. Case closed - not so fast! Now the team is on top of the collegiate basketball mountain, more people come to town to kiss their shiny gold medals and nothing else. Loving the overwhelming support the Archers riding on from their success, but once everything is out of control, will these medal-digging people still shower them with such emotions?
We know people who wear this certain team’s apparel even though they cannot name five players from there. In line with that, I feel nothing but disgust every time I see someone wearing a shirt from (team name here) even though they only support them just because of their winning streaks without knowing who the other players are besides the star player. Wherever I go, the jerseys of NBA teams I only see are either Lakers, Heat, Knicks, or Celtics. Apparently there is no love for the Nuggets, Pacers, and most especially Jordan’s Bobcats. Same goes for those UAAP teams: apparel bearing two or three universities with respectable records in basketball everywhere in the street. Sightings of those “fans” remind me of the time when a huge number of Miami Heat fans left Game 6 of this year’s NBA Finals only because they were losing to the San Antonio Spurs. Unfortunately for them, they didn’t stay to witness Ray Allen’s miracle which proved to be a game-winning shot for the Heat. Therefore I quote Chris Bosh’s reaction once news broke out on fans leaving the arena before it ended, “Don’t come back to Game 7."
And for this very whimsical reason, Bosh was right.
Shame on those Heat bandwagoners. Thanks to Bosh, they have been exploited as fans who would leave the arena when their team is crawling on its bellies just to score. This is a big no-no in being a fan in general. A fair-weathered disposition is greatly unwelcome in the legion.
Everyone loves a winner, but that is neither a valid excuse nor the main reason to hop on a team or a certain player. Be there to love the team not only because your favorite player is there or the media hype surrounding them but also with the way they play. I support my school’s basketball team not because their players are such eye candy they can be likened to athletic versions of Francisco Lachowski. My support comes from the exuberance they exhibit in every game they’re at. Pittsburgh Penguins was the first team I enjoyed watching when I first got into hockey. In fact, I didn’t even know they were a winning team until later. The more I followed the sport, the deeper I connected myself to the Pens and so did my familiarity with the other twenty-nine NHL teams.
So there you have it: the confessions of a sports fan who hates asinine bandwagoners and loves her team wholeheartedly win or lose. Now you all know why I don’t hop on the Clippers truck despite their drastic turnaround from late-night punchline to serious title contender. To all the people who switched from Lakers to the team I just mentioned, where were you when Lob City was the doormat of the NBA several years ago?
Another question to those who only like the Green Archers just because of their appearances or their success this season: where were you when they missed the Final Four twice in 2009 and 2011?
Before I let the curtains fall on the floor, realization hit me hard: it took me three hours to type this entry in my computer and another twenty-one to collect and organize these thoughts.
