Japeth Aguilar trying to become Philippines’ Jeremy Lin

How crazy is people in Philippines about basketball? Well, Manila, the capital of the country – 7,000 miles removed from the closest NBA action – is the sixth city in the world where this site draws the most traffic. That puts it ahead of Houston, Washington, Atlanta or Boston, all of them hosting NBA teams.

The game, taken to Philippines by Americans in 1900, has long been popular in the country. It’s by far the most practiced sport by Filipinos and TV ratings are consistently strong. The passion for the game has not equalled success on the international level, though, with lack of height very much to blame. While the National Team has medaled 15 times in Asian tournaments, Philippines has failed to make a big impact on a worldwide level. The country has not qualified for the Olympics since 1972 and has never produced an NBA player.

Although it’s a long shot, at least there’s one young man trying to change the latter. Japeth Aguilar, an athletic 6-foot-9 forward, has spent the last month working out in the U.S. with hopes of joining a pro team stateside. The 25-year-old Aguilar has already practiced in front of scouts from the Spurs and Hornets and tried out for the Bakersfield Jam of the NBADL.

The son of a former basketball player now working in a factory in Chicago, Aguilar calls Jeremy Lin an inspiration to pursue his dream of playing in the NBA one day.

“The story about Jeremy Lin is really inspiring,” Aguilar told HoopsHype. “How he worked to get into the NBA… It’s really inspiring. I actually had the chance to play with him in Las Vegas at Impact (Basketball). He really worked hard. You can tell that he’s really something special. When we were playing with him, you could see he was all over the court. I don’t really know if he remembers, but we went and say ‘Hi” to him.”

As expected, Aguilar’s American adventure is being closely followed back home with daily reports about the experience.

“I think the Philippines is the most basketball-crazy country in the world not to have any local-born player yet making it to the NBA,” Filipino reporter Fidel Mangonon said. “So we’re hoping Japeth makes it.”

“People there always want to know what’s happening (with me),” Aguilar said. “There’s a little pressure from the media. It’s the media and the fans, both. I try not to think about it.”

With the NBA an unrealistic goal at this time, Aguilar’s best shot at a career in the United States right now would be in the D-League. Brian Levy, assistant general manager for the Bakersfield Jam, saw some positives in Aguilar’s game during his workout with the club.

“Japeth has great length and athleticism, especially at his size,” Levy said. “He’s an explosive leaper that runs the floor well and has good instincts when crashing the offensive glass. He can shoot just well enough from three that he must be respected.

“He has the tools to contribute to a team this year if he finds the right situation.”

While Aguilar’s potential remains intriguing, his lack of production in his home country should raise some red flags. At 6-foot-9, he averaged just 5.9 ppg and 4.1 rpg last season at the Governor’s Cup in Philippines, where 6-foot-5 centers are not rare and Aguilar should be dominating on physical skills alone….

via HoopsHype – Japeth Aguilar trying to become Philippines’ Jeremy Lin.