Did you know? Even Benjie Paras got the cold treatment from legendary coach Joe Lipa

From his school days to his pro days, Benjie Paras was a basketball champion.

But despite his star status, even Paras experienced the cold treatment as a player, and he got it from legendary coach Joe Lipa.

Lipa, for those who are not familiar, is a champion coach who handled Paras and the likes of Ronnie Magsanoc and Eric Altamirano.

In an episode of "Surprise Guest with Pia Arcangel," Paras narrated a story of how in one practice, he suffered from a sprain and was asked to leave the court by Lipa.

"It’s a hard sprain na talagang maiiyak ka sa sakit. Eh andoon ako sa gitna, nilapitan ako ng players.

Lumapit siya sa akin, sabi niya sa akin, 'yung sobra akong sigaw ng sigaw nung natapos, tapos sabi niya, 'Okay ka?'

'Okay ako coach.'

'Masakit?'

'Oo,'

'Pero kaya mo?'

Hindi ko na kaya mag practice 'ka ko. Sabi, 'Sige umalis ka rito sa court kasi nag pa-practice kami, nakaharang ka. Iyon ang sabi niya sa akin."

Paras then narrated that he had to crawl out of the court while his teammates were practicing.

"Parang tinignan niya 'yung mga players, 'yung mga players, gusto akong tulungan pero wala nag-alisan, parang tumingin siya na 'wag tutulungan," Paras recalled. "Ayun, gumapang ako and then andoon lang ako, naglagay ako ng ice sa sarili ko."

And it was as if nothing happened after the incident, according to Paras.

Despite this, Paras still credits Lipa as one of his influences in improving his craft.

"Because of the coaches I've been with, especially with coach Joe [Lipa], 'di ba nga doon ko na-realize na parang there's always room for improvement na hindi porket okay ka, andoon ka na lang."

In his pro career, Paras was a four-time PBA champion and was the league's first and only rookie MVP.

—Justin Kenneth Carandang/JMB, GMA News