UE Red Warriors standout John Abate wants to follow his own path
Photo courtesy of: Chin Cabas
Promising UE point guard John Abate aims to improve himself overall as a basketball player.
After transferring to UE following his initial commitment to UST, the 23-year-old is still adjusting to the new program under head coach Jack Santiago.
“My goal is just to be better than I was yesterday, get 1% better every day. Learn from my mistakes, and ultimately be the best basketball player I can be, if not the best version of what I can be on and off the court,” he told ALL-STAR Magazine in an exclusive interview.
For the Filipino-American hooper, his move from the United States to the Philippines is like being thrown into a new environment and having to figure everything out immediately on his first day. This is something he had to do twice. First as a Growling Tiger, and then as a Red Warrior.
“It was a little hectic at first, just everything being thrown into something new. But as days go on, you start learning how to fit into the program, how to excel in your position, and learn everything to the very little detail.”
The former Spring Hill College student-athlete mentioned that playing basketball in the Philippines was a goal he had since he was a kid.
“Coming to the Philippines has been a goal of mine since I was probably 13 years old. I was really young. My brother had dreams and aspirations to come in here, and he fulfilled them.” John shared.
Anthony Abate played for Enderun College as a shooting guard.
“Unexpectedly, a pandemic happened when he was at Enderun College. He was here for about six or seven months and doing nothing. That’s part of the reason why I wore number 11, because that was his number during college, and what he wore most of the time besides high school.”
Despite being the son of former PBA All-Star John Arigo, Abate has no plans to live up to his biological father’s career. He is aware that there will be expectations, but he’s eager to carve his own path.
“I’m not going to compare my career to his, because that’s not me. I have my own career. I have a different last name. The only thing that we share is blood. The only person I’m going to compare myself to is me,” he proudly stated.
Abate wants to build a name for himself. He is currently focusing on his career as a Red Warrior and fitting into their system. He had impressive outings in the team’s offseason tournaments.
“Living up to or having expectations to him is not really in my mind. It’s just doing the best I can every day, not only for myself but whatever team or program, and what I am right now is being a Red Warrior.”
When it comes to what makes Philippine basketball unique, Abate has noticed the difference in foul calling and physicality.
“A big difference that I really can specify on is, in America, you’ll give you that initial bump on defense, and then we try to block every shot. Here, we’re constantly bumping you the whole way, more physicality. We’re going to hit you on the ground before you can get up in the air.”
He credits his first coach Pido Jarencio for helping him adjust to the plays of Philippine basketball.
“That was actually what Coach Pido taught me when I was at UST. It was a great observation, and I took that and learned from it, so I can apply it when I’m playing. I would say every ref is different. The inconsistency of calls is just part of the game, you just have to live with it. It’s a game that we all love playing, and we love the competition.”