The Mastermind

TAB Baldwin trades the glory of international basketball to developing college kids into better persons. JOAQUIN FLORES

There is no doubt that Tab Baldwin is the best coach outside the Philippine Basketball Association.

He is a former national team coach of Malaysia, New Zealand, Lebanon and the Philippines while calling the shots for one of the most competitive clubs in West Asia — the Sagesse Sports Club of Lebanon — as well as those in Turkey, Romania and Greece in between.

At one point, he made international headlines when he steered a scrappy New Zealand squad to a second runner-up finish in the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) World Championships in 2002, where they demolished Carlos Arroyo and the Puerto Ricans in the quarterfinals before falling prey to Vlade Divac, Peja Stojakovic and the Yugoslavians in the semifinals and Dirk Nowitzki and the Germans in the battle for third place.

More than the international glory, he wants to mold college kids not just to become good shooters or solid rebounders, but also to become good persons who are capable of living life outside the sanctuary of competitive basketball.

And embracing the role as head coach of Ateneo de Manila University will help him define his legacy.

But landing on the Blue Eagles’ nest wasn’t really part of the plan.

After steering Lebanon to the title of FIBA Asia Stankovic Cup in 2010 and Lebanon to a second-place finish in the FIBA Asia Men’s Championship in 2011, the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP) tapped Baldwin to serve as Gilas Pilipinas mentor, replacing Chot Reyes.

He hit the ground running as he led the Filipinos to the 28th Southeast Asian Games in Singapore, the William Jones Cup in Taipei and the FIBA Asia Men’s Championship in Changsha, China in 2015.

Former SBP president Manny Pangilinan offered him a job he couldn’t refuse.

“I really didn’t choose Ateneo. The job was offered to me by Mr. Pangilinan when I was still the Gilas coach,” said the 61-year-old Baldwin, whose coaching journey started in 1996.

“At that point, I thought that handling college kids was an interesting opportunity. Although I was here to coach in the professional ranks and be involved in the national team program, I accepted the role as college coach because of a chance to help young players in their development.”

TAB Baldwin trades the glory of international basketball to developing college kids into better persons. JOAQUIN FLORES

“And besides, that’s what Mr. Pangilinan asked me to do.”

He quickly turned things around as he led Ateneo to back-to-back titles in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines, cementing his status as one of the best coaches to call the shots in the collegiate level.

Now, the Blue Eagles may not be as talented as De La Salle University or University of the Philippines, but they posses the best defense in the league and have already posted nine straight wins to gain a handsome chance of winning yet another title.

But for Baldwin, the defense, the statistics and the wins are all secondary.

“It’s a lot more intensive teaching and a lot more hours to think about how you’re helping them individually,” said Baldwin, who was also appointed as the federation’s program director, a job that requires him to chart the national team program en route to the country’s hosting of the 2023 FIBA World Cup.

“It’s not about learning. It’s about adjusting to the collegiate style. It’s a lot more teaching, it’s a lot more hard work. But it is an awesome job.”

Baldwin admitted that he’s already entering the twilight of his stellar coaching career.

“I am in my 60’s right now so I know that the horizon may used to seem a long, long way but it’s not far away now,” he said.

“But that’s okay. That is the cycle of life. I am very blessed with this job and I am blessed to be with these kids and I am going to enjoy it as long as it lasts.”

“For me, it’s taking the emphasis off from winning, but putting emphasis on the development.”

“With Ateneo, we have the blessing of having great kids. They’re academically inclined. We put a premium on the character and normally. It’s enjoyable going to work with these people.”

For Baldwin, coaching college kids is not a job.

It is a calling, a vocation that he needs to fulfill.