Kobe Paras takes talents to UP Maroons

“The University of the Philippines is the most respected educational institution in the country. The attraction of UP is not just its basketball program, which just gets better each year, but the world-class education it is known for,” Paras said in a statement. (Photo: UP Fighting Maroons/Twitter)

The University of the Philippines (UP) Fighting Maroons is about to get a boost as Gilas cadet Kobe Paras announced on Tuesday, July 10, that he will be taking his talents to the team.

“The University of the Philippines is the most respected educational institution in the country. The attraction of UP is not just its basketball program, which just gets better each year, but the world-class education it is known for,” Paras said in a statement.

Paras is the son of Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) legend Benjie Paras who helped the Fighting Maroons to get its only University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) men’s basketball title in 1986.

According to the 20-year-old Paras, his decision to play for the Maroons was based on “what could contribute to me becoming better in my chosen field and at the sport I love.”

“I look forward to the challenge of helping make the Fighting Maroons a better basketball team, and the challenge of helping myself become a better student,” he said.

Paras will have to complete a one-year residency with UP Diliman before he suits up for Season 82 of the UAAP men’s basketball tournament along with Nigerian big man Bright Akhuetie and his Gilas teammate and former De La Salle University (DLSU) Green Archer Ricci Rivero.

Fighting Maroons head coach Bo Perasol welcomed the addition of Paras; however, he said the team should not be complacent as all other schools have also worked hard to get better in the off-season.

“Talent is talent, and we are fortunate to have a talent like Kobe on board. Winning, as experience has shown us, takes more than talent,” Perasol noted.

He added, “We have to get everyone on the same page and to play the right way, and that is what we will be working on in the months to come.”

Last March, Paras announced that he wanted to enter the world of professional basketball after he canceled plans to play for California State University Northridge (CSUN) in the United States (US) National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA).

His father expressed his support for his son’s decision, saying that the younger Paras was “taking one of the hardest steps in his journey to date and embracing full manhood.”