The interview with Arwind Santos at the Araneta Coliseum in Cubao, Quezon City.
RAGS TO RICHES
It’s anybody’s ballgame!By Lovelyn M. Quintos
Known as “The Whirlwind,” “The Spiderman” and “The Human Eraser” of the country’s most prestigious basketball league, Arwind Santos shares how he made his way through the basket of success.
To his fans and to local basketball enthusiasts, the name Arwind Santos does not only ring a bell but has also certainly made quite a huge label for this six-foot-four stalwart of the Air21 Express and pride of Angeles City, Pampanga.
“Langit at lupa”: this was how he described how different his life is now from what he experienced in the past. Being born third to the four children of Ernesto Santos and Araceli Anaya-Santos, he unfortunately had to suffer a lot of adversities in life, a common struggle for families being tested with several hardships on their travel to triumph.
At the height of his career, rumors revealed that Santos actually worked at a young age and even played “ending,” a form of gambling whereas the winner is determined through the final scores of basketball games. When asked to clarify this issue, during an interview, Santos did not deny the whole thing and admitted that it was before, and we can now see a totally different and changed Arwind Santos.
“Oo, totoo ‘yun (that I participated in gambling) but that was before. Totoo ‘yun, lahat ng naririnig natin…marami pang iba. Kaya lang iba na ‘ko ngayon,” he proudly said.
He also shared that the reason for such major leap in his development is that he holds on to his dream and leans on to the Almighty Father and to his loved ones.
“Ginusto ko lang, tapos pinagtiyagaan ko kahit mahirap, kahit malayo sa mga mahal ko, sa family ko…tapos tinibayan ko yung loob ko, kasama ko ang Diyos, nagdadasal ako lagi, tapos ''yun natupad ko yung gusto ko,” Santos exclaimed.
The road to his fruitful career is definitely no laughing matter. Before entering the nation’s top basketball association, Santos played for the Far Eastern University at the equally renowned Universities Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) where he managed to wow the crowd with his famous two-handed dunks and soft touches, thanks to his envied leaping ability and long arms. The FEU Tamaraws enjoyed five seasons with Santos', who, in that short period of time, bagged two UAAP Most Valuable Player Awards and led his team to two championship titles.
When he left the team in 2005, Santos marked a major part in FEU's basketball history as his jersey number, 19, retired and is hung at the school’s gym, symbolizing FEU’s recognition to the feat that he showed.
His performance was also not new to the Philippine Basketball League, where Santos gained more experience in playing the game he loves the most, clearing the way to one title for the Viva Mineral Water team while getting the unanimous nod of spectators and judges for the MVP award.
In 2006, Santos decided to enter the Philippine Basketball Association and was drafted by the Air21 Express as second pick overall.
The league and the team might change but the ball is still round. He showed the same intensity on the court and never failed to make his family proud of his accomplishments.
Something that is admirable of this 27-year-old basketball star is that he always shows how much he wants and loves basketball, one of his secrets on how he was able to collect all those titles under his name.
“Ang basketball parang buhay, parang sarili ko, pag di ko inalagaan, hindi ko makukuha, kaya kailangan ko na alagaan ang sarili ko at ang basketball para magtagal pa sa ‘kin,” he added.
Despite the fame and the fortune he benefits from his lucrative effort, Santos always remains respectful to his family and to God from whom he gets his inspiration whenever he is on the hard court playing.
“Syempre sa mga mahal ko sa buhay (ako kumukuha ng inspirasyon). Sa family ko, sa ating Amang nasa langit, sa sumusuporta sa ‘kin, sa team ko, sa Air21.”
His message to his fans and to those who dream of following his path:
“Always pray, basta whatever you want na gusto mong matupad sa buhay, tuparin mo at gustuhin mo…importante sa lahat, isama mo ang Diyos para siguradong matupad mo.”
Arwind Santos’ story remains to be one among the many success tales proving that when you have a dream, there is no boundary to success, as long as you know how to grasp that goal and never forget the people around you and God along the way. It is anybody’s ballgame and we should hold on to the ball tighter.
It’s anybody’s ballgame!By Lovelyn M. Quintos
Known as “The Whirlwind,” “The Spiderman” and “The Human Eraser” of the country’s most prestigious basketball league, Arwind Santos shares how he made his way through the basket of success.
To his fans and to local basketball enthusiasts, the name Arwind Santos does not only ring a bell but has also certainly made quite a huge label for this six-foot-four stalwart of the Air21 Express and pride of Angeles City, Pampanga.
“Langit at lupa”: this was how he described how different his life is now from what he experienced in the past. Being born third to the four children of Ernesto Santos and Araceli Anaya-Santos, he unfortunately had to suffer a lot of adversities in life, a common struggle for families being tested with several hardships on their travel to triumph.
At the height of his career, rumors revealed that Santos actually worked at a young age and even played “ending,” a form of gambling whereas the winner is determined through the final scores of basketball games. When asked to clarify this issue, during an interview, Santos did not deny the whole thing and admitted that it was before, and we can now see a totally different and changed Arwind Santos.
“Oo, totoo ‘yun (that I participated in gambling) but that was before. Totoo ‘yun, lahat ng naririnig natin…marami pang iba. Kaya lang iba na ‘ko ngayon,” he proudly said.
He also shared that the reason for such major leap in his development is that he holds on to his dream and leans on to the Almighty Father and to his loved ones.
“Ginusto ko lang, tapos pinagtiyagaan ko kahit mahirap, kahit malayo sa mga mahal ko, sa family ko…tapos tinibayan ko yung loob ko, kasama ko ang Diyos, nagdadasal ako lagi, tapos ''yun natupad ko yung gusto ko,” Santos exclaimed.
The road to his fruitful career is definitely no laughing matter. Before entering the nation’s top basketball association, Santos played for the Far Eastern University at the equally renowned Universities Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) where he managed to wow the crowd with his famous two-handed dunks and soft touches, thanks to his envied leaping ability and long arms. The FEU Tamaraws enjoyed five seasons with Santos', who, in that short period of time, bagged two UAAP Most Valuable Player Awards and led his team to two championship titles.
When he left the team in 2005, Santos marked a major part in FEU's basketball history as his jersey number, 19, retired and is hung at the school’s gym, symbolizing FEU’s recognition to the feat that he showed.
His performance was also not new to the Philippine Basketball League, where Santos gained more experience in playing the game he loves the most, clearing the way to one title for the Viva Mineral Water team while getting the unanimous nod of spectators and judges for the MVP award.
In 2006, Santos decided to enter the Philippine Basketball Association and was drafted by the Air21 Express as second pick overall.
The league and the team might change but the ball is still round. He showed the same intensity on the court and never failed to make his family proud of his accomplishments.
Something that is admirable of this 27-year-old basketball star is that he always shows how much he wants and loves basketball, one of his secrets on how he was able to collect all those titles under his name.
“Ang basketball parang buhay, parang sarili ko, pag di ko inalagaan, hindi ko makukuha, kaya kailangan ko na alagaan ang sarili ko at ang basketball para magtagal pa sa ‘kin,” he added.
Despite the fame and the fortune he benefits from his lucrative effort, Santos always remains respectful to his family and to God from whom he gets his inspiration whenever he is on the hard court playing.
“Syempre sa mga mahal ko sa buhay (ako kumukuha ng inspirasyon). Sa family ko, sa ating Amang nasa langit, sa sumusuporta sa ‘kin, sa team ko, sa Air21.”
His message to his fans and to those who dream of following his path:
“Always pray, basta whatever you want na gusto mong matupad sa buhay, tuparin mo at gustuhin mo…importante sa lahat, isama mo ang Diyos para siguradong matupad mo.”
Arwind Santos’ story remains to be one among the many success tales proving that when you have a dream, there is no boundary to success, as long as you know how to grasp that goal and never forget the people around you and God along the way. It is anybody’s ballgame and we should hold on to the ball tighter.
