Saturday, August 07, 2004 Meneses's star still shines bright
THE years fly fast and it's been that way for FedEx swingman Vergel Meneses. Most of his contemporaries have come and gone, played their careers out and stayed out of the scene already.
But Meneses? He's still the king of the league's air space, still floating above everyone's heads and to top it all off, he's still going to play in this year's Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) All-Star Game in Cebu.
"Magandang chance 'to para maibalik natin sa mga fans sa Cebu 'yung pagsuporta nila sa liga (This is a good chance to give back something to our fans to Cebu for supporting our league)," said Meneses, now 35, and in his 13th season in the league.
And he won't just play or serve as a token veteran to fill up the remaining roster of a team. His 141,721 votes made him the second-leading vote getter at the end of the All-Star balloting. Meaning, he will come in as a starter on the North Team to be coached by Yeng Guiao, who is now vice governor of Pampanga. That also means he will be on his ninth All-Star appearance.
Only Kenneth Duremdes of Sta. Lucia, who will be playing for the South Team, boast the same number of appearances in the PBA's mid-season offering sponsored by Talk N Text and supported by Gran Matador Brandy, Accel, Viva Mineral Water, McDonalds, Air 21 and Cebu Pacific.
That says a lot about the type of impact the Aerial Voyager's flight pattern creates.
"Du'n sa pagiging second place ko, nagulat ako kasi marami ngang mas bata sa 'kin. Nagpapasalamat ako na mahal pa rin tayo ng mga fans, na gusto pa rin tayo. Lalo na du'n sa mga taga-Cebu na naghihintay sa 'tin, maraming salamat (For landing in second place, I was surprised because there were those much younger than I am. I am thankful that they still love me, they still like me. Especially to those from Cebu who are waiting for us, thank you so much)," Meneses added.
Meneses's All-Star resume isn't one to be undermined. Among the veterans seeing action in Cebu City next week, only Meneses and Duremdes has won the game's Most Valuable Player (MVP) Award. Duremdes won only once in 1996.
But Meneses didn't just win once or twice or even thrice. He won four times in 1995, 1998, 2000 and 2003 - an achievement that could take a long while to match or surpass. It is also a testament that the Aerial Voyager is still the brightest star in game among stars.
"Pare-pareho lang naman ang laro sa All-Star. Ito na 'yung time na makapag-relax ang mga players sa court kahit isang laro lang (The game is the same in All-Star. This is the time when the players can relax in court, even for just one game)," said Meneses, who will be reunited with Guiao at least for one night.
Asked what type of advice he could give to first-time All-Star players like his FedEx teammate John Ferriols, Meneses put it in simple terms. "Enjoy n'yo lang 'yung game (Just enjoy the game)."
High-flyers have soared the PBA skies and landed in its runways but no one did it better than Meneses. This week's All-Star is no different. PR/PBA
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