TOKYO—Fadi El-Khatib and Elie Stephan, Lebanon’s present and future basketball stars, are talking highly of two Filipino point guards who they say defined—and will redefine—the position in the region.
“Jimmy Alapag is a great player, one of the greatest I’ve seen,” said El-Khatib, the 32-year-old scoring legend, Thursday night. “Even if he’s so small, he can take over a game. He’s so smart, I haven’t seen anyone like him.”
El-Khatib said that, about four years ago, he even considered talking to Alapag to bring the one-time PBA MVP to the Lebanese pro league to play as an import.
“Yes, he’s been talking about him a lot,” Stephan butted in. “Jimmy Alapag can do this, Jimmy Alapag can do that. Is he really that good? I know one who’s very good, your guard (LA) Tenorio.”
Tenorio was the MVP in the Jones Cup, a tournament Smart Gilas-Pilipinas ruled in Taipei last month. The Filipinos lost to just one team there, Lebanon.