Howard inspired by Asian work ethic

SPORTING CHANCE By Joaquin M. Henson
Philippine Star
Tuesday, October 23, 2007

MACAU – Orlando Magic center Dwight Howard said the other day what impresses him the most about Asians is the way they work so hard. It’s the one thing that he saw in his first Asian trip in 2005 and observed once more in the visit to Shanghai and this former Portuguese colony last week.

“I’m amazed by the discipline of the Asian people,” said Howard. “They work non-stop. In the Venetian Hotel, for instance, I saw people working all the time, at all hours of the day. You don’t see them take a break. They go out and work, that’s what they do, no matter what type of work it is. I find that inspiring.”

Howard was interviewed by Filipino and Taiwanese reporters for almost two hours in total at the top-level suite overlooking the Venetian Arena playing court last Friday morning.

Adidas marketing communications manager Odette Velarde arranged the interviews for the Philippine press made up of The Star’s Bill Velasco, Maxim Magazine’s Rovilson Fernandez, Solar vice president for marketing and radio sports talk show host Jude Turcuato and this writer.

Although the Magic was blanked in the opening round of the playoffs by Detroit last season, Howard said the team now has what it takes to make it to the finals.

“Our goal is to win the championship,” he said. “It’s going to be a lot of hard work but if we push ourselves to the limit, I think we can do it.”

Howard pointed to veteran recruit Rashard Lewis as the “big difference” in what he anticipates to be Orlando’s turnaround. “He’s great for the team,” said Howard. “He can post up, shoot the three, play defense and do it all. Coach Stan (Van Gundy) is installing a new system and we all like it. We’re going to be a different, much quicker team this season.”

Howard said he’s looking forward to playing for the US in the Beijing Olympics next year.

“The challenge of playing for the Magic and the US team is just about the same but my roles are different in each,” he said. “For the US, I don’t really look to score. I defend the post, rebound and help out my teammates. For the Magic, I’m the leader who scores, defends and rebounds. Either way, it’s a big challenge for me to do my job the best I can.”

Howard, 21, said impossible is nothing with God on your side. “If you have faith, you’ll get better in what you do,” he continued. “When I play, I play for God and I do what I can to spread the faith.”

As for Adidas, Howard said he’s always worn the shoe with the three stripes. “From when I can remember, I’ve always worn Adidas,” said Howard. “I appreciate what Adidas does for me, the support and the confidence. I’m excited about my signature shoe which is coming out next year.”

Of the FIBA rules, Howard said allowing interference above the rim is particularly “cool.”

“You can’t do it in the NBA because they’ll call either offensive or defensive goaltending but in FIBA, you can swat the ball away if you’re defending once it hits the rim even if it’s still above the cylinder or you can slam it in if you’re in offense,” said Howard. “You can even do that on the last free throw.”

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Fernandez, a Fil-Am from San Jose, California, asked Howard a series of quick questions to which he replied just as quickly. Some examples were if you played in college, what school would it be and who do you like more – Beyonce or Halle Berry and what would you rather be known as – a slam dunk champion or the league’s rebounding leader and if you weren’t playing basketball, what would you be doing and what do you prefer – boxers or briefs.

Fernandez will reveal Howard’s answers in a coming issue of Maxim Magazine, one of the country’s top four “lad” publications.

A film production graduate from San Diego State, Fernandez settled in Manila in 1999, doing on-camera work for Lakbay TV and “Game Plan.” His parents are from Pangasinan.

Is it true that he got his name Rovilson because his father is Rodolfo, mother is Vilma and he’s their son? “No, no, no,” he said. “Every year, I ask my dad where he got my name and every year, he’s given me a different answer. To this day, I don’t know.”

An Ali Peek look-alike, Fernandez said he enjoys the challenge of making Maxim – which originated in England – a great read for the Filipino market. There are nine Asian editions of Maxim and only the Filipino version is in English with 30 percent content coming from overseas. In all, Maxim has over 30 editions in different languages.

Fernandez and Marc Nelson will be featured as one of 10 teams in AXN TV’s “Amazing Race” second season soon. They auditioned to participate and got the nod. The Philippines and India had the most applicants for the Asia edition of the popular reality series.

By the way, the Adidas-sponsored Philippine media delegation survived its own version of the “Amazing Race” by catching the PAL flight from Hong Kong to Manila at 9 p.m. last Saturday. Odette did an incredible job in improvising after the group missed the ferry from Macau to Hong Kong by just a few minutes because of the long lines for bus shuttles after the Orlando-Cleveland game. Congratulations to the survivors!