Chris Newsome thrilled to have rubbed elbows with PBA greats
At A Glance
- Meralco star Chris Newsome couldn't help but be amused by the chance to rub elbows with the PBA greats during the league's two-day celebration of its 50th Season, first during the homecoming event at the Meralco Theater on Saturday, Oct. 4, and the the formal opening ceremony the day after.
Meralco's Chris Newsome (PBA Images)
Meralco star Chris Newsome couldn't help but be amused by the chance to rub elbows with the PBA greats during the league’s two-day celebration of its 50th Season, first during the homecoming event at the Meralco Theater on Saturday, Oct. 4, and the the formal opening ceremony the day after.
Seeing and knowing the league greats only through old highlight clips posted on social media, Newsome admitted that he was starstrucked by the constellation of past PBA stars that descended upon the Smart Araneta Coliseum during the golden season celebration.
“Today is actually one of the first times that I get to meet some of these guys for the first time. And it's nice to be able to shake their hand and thank them for all the things that they've done,” said Newsome.
"A lot of them I've seen only through videos and only through YouTube. And to finally meet them in person, it's really nice to bridge that gap,” he added.
Some of the PBA greats that attended the celebrations were Ramon Fernandez, Allan Caidic, Alvin Patrimonio, Atoy Co, Bong Hawkins, Vergel Meneses, Benjie Paras, Ronnie Magsanoc, Johnny Abarrientos, Jojo Lastimosa, Arwind Santos. and many others.
For current PBA stars like Newsome, it was a full circle moment as they turned back into being fans of these legends.
“Without those guys, without those legends, we definitely wouldn't be where we are as PBA, as a league. And a lot of these guys wouldn't have had those idols that they could look up to to have that PBA dream. And now some of those guys are in the PBA today,” furthered Newsome.
“It's a full circle moment for a lot of these people, including myself.”
Seeing the PBA legends, particularly those who are members of the league 50 greatest list, makes Newsome want to be part of the next fifty to be recognized.
“I'm excited to see that list of top 100 because now you've got a bunch of young guys that are coming into the league that are also capable of competing at a high level,” said Newsome.
Ramon Rafael