Filipinos in a frenzy for the NBA Finals
Amid the global frenzy surrounding the NBA Finals, Filipino diehards are localizing their championship anxiety all in the name of fun.
A doctored video clip featuring a dejected Golden State Warriors superstar Steph Curry went viral on social media right after his team got beat by the Toronto Raptors to take a 2-1 lead in the best of 7 Finals.
You’d marvel at how they made it look like Curry was speaking in Ilocano with a Cordillera twang. He was explaining that the Raptors outplayed the defending champions because their stars Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson went AWOL from Game 3 because they visited Apo Whang-od, a tattoo artist in Kalinga.
Durant was, of course, out with an injury and Thompson was questionable to play for the crucial game.
“My relatives in California suffered heart attacks minutes ago,” deadpanned retired newsman Alex Allan said on Facebook. “Thankfully, the attacks weren’t fatal and they quickly recovered.”
Manong Alex’s quip went up minutes after the Warriors nipped the Raptors, 105-104, at Chase Center in Toronto on Tuesday to extend their season. The Raptors, leading 3-2, gun for their first ever NBA title on the road in Oakland on Friday.
A sixth game appears to arrest the free-fall of American shows when it comes to local television viewing.
That the NBA Finals become a rating success locally and elsewhere in the globe is a no-brainer. TV network executives in different time zones need not screen Angelina Jolie having lesbian sex with a Bond girl to pull in the numbers.
We the North facing the Walking Wounded won’t be straight from central casting but will be a scriptwriter’s dream when it happens for Game 6.
You could not ask for more drama with the Raptors in full force facing the limping Warriors, who will play without Durant and, maybe, Kevin Looney with his bruised rib.
Durant has announced on Instagram he already underwent surgery on his ruptured right Achilles tendon and that the operation was a success.
“My road back starts now! I got my family and my loved ones by my side and we truly appreciate all the messages and support people have sent our way,” he wrote from his hospital bed.
“I’m proud that I gave it all I physically could and I’m proud my brothers got the W,” Durant said of his team’s win on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, the Raptors faithful are still depressed about Coach Nick Nurse’s decision to call a time out with his team up by six points with about three minutes left to play in Game 5.
That allowed the Dubs to catch their breaths and steady their defense, forcing the NBA Finals to return to Oakland for the Warriors’ final game at Oracle before moving to a new arena in downtown San Francisco for the 2019-2020 season.
