He may be a man of many achievements, but basketball legend Carlos “Caloy” Lozaga emphasized an important lesson to his sons: the value of humility.
“He was a big-hearted man. Talagang humble, he instilled that to us,” Joey, one of Loyzaga’s sons, said on Chino Trinidad’s report for “24 Oras” Friday.
A product of the San Beda College basketball program in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), Loyzaga was a pillar of Philippine basketball particularly during the post-war years, a time when the country was considered a global powerhouse in the sport.
Dubbed “The Big Difference,” he was integral in the 1954 FIBA World Championship where the Philippines bagged a bronze medal, the first and only time the national team made a podium finish in basketball’s biggest event.
In the said tournament, the former NCAA star was also named in the All-Mythical team, the only Asian to do so.
After playing for the Philippines, the older Loyzaga eventually called the shots for the national team. He was the head coach of the Philippine team that won the gold medal in the 1967 Asian Basketball Championships.
Despite his achievements, Loyzaga kept his feet on the ground.
“Whatever you have achieved, always be humble. Never put your achievements into your head,” was what he taught his children, said Joey.
Loyzaga’s sons, Joey and Chito, also became members of the Philippine national team. Joey recalled another lesson their father always told them. “‘Hijo, do not think of your name in the back. Think of the flag in front that you’re representing.’”
The basketball legend passed away in 2016 and his family has one remaining wish: that Caloy Loyzaga be included in FIBA’s Hall of Fame. – Justin Kenneth Carandang/RC, GMA News
