Photo by Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net
MANILA, Philippines—San Miguel continued to rewrite the record books with its fifth straight Philippine Cup championship.
That string of success surpassed what Alaska did back in the 1990s when it won four consecutive Governors’ Cups from 1994 to 1997.
What the Beermen has done deserved a place in the annals of PBA history and forward Arwind Santos even likened the legacy they’ve built to Michael Jordan’s.
“Basically, this is like the story of Michael Jordan because even if Michael Jordan passes away his legacy and his shoes will always be there,” said Santos in Filipino after the Beermen’s fans’ day Friday at Robinson’s Magnolia.
Jordan, regarded as the greatest basketball player of all time, won six titles with the Chicago Bulls in the 90s and his Jordan Brand has continually released sneakers that have captured the minds of not only the sporting world but also of hiphop and fashion.
Santos, an eight-time champion all with San Miguel, added that he’s not putting the Beermen’s achievement side by side with Jordan’s but said his team’s impact in PBA history will be talked about for years to come.
“I’m not saying we’re on the same level as Jordan, but even if we’re gone and it’s our grandkids playing, there will be teams that will reach the finals and be in the same scenario as us,” said Santos.
“The commentators, the people who will cover the games will say ‘oh I remember a team that has done that before, I remember San Miguel.’”
Santos added there’s still one more goal they have to get and that is to complete the elusive Grand Slam.
The Beermen came closest to achieving the Triple Crown back in the 2016-17 season when they won the first two conferences before losing to Barangay Ginebra in the Governors’ Cup quarterfinals.
San Miguel has brought back Charles Rhodes, who led the Beermen to a title in the 2017 Commissioner’s Cup, for the next conference.
“Whenever San Miguel is in the finals, every one of us are too determined not to let that moment slip away,” said Santos. “Charles is already proven, he’s given us a championship and he knows how to play with us under the system of coach Leo (Austria).”
The Governors’ Cup, however, is an entirely different story.
“The only question here is, who will we take to matchup against Brownlee?”