WITH OUTSIDE movement currently limited because of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, people are looking for creative and alternative ways to try and get back to the swing of things.

For College of Saint Benilde (CSB) men’s basketball coach TY Tang, he is tapping the online platform to share his basketball knowledge, turning his sports clinic into a free online resource hub accessible through social media sites Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.

Started in 2008, the TY Tang Basketball School, a training program for kids and teens, was forced to make changes on how it is presented after the government declared a state of public health emergency and put the entire of Luzon on enhanced community quarantine, which included barring mass gatherings to help prevent the spread of the highly contagious COVID-19.

Mr. Tang said such a setup is taking time to get used to but he is not letting it get in the way of him reaching out and sharing his passion for the sport of basketball.

“It was my basketball school in Xavier that I certainly missed as I can’t connect much with the kids that I’ve been used to seeing on a weekly basis,” said Mr. Tang, 35, of him going online and doing his thing.

“My plan is to make two to three posts a week. I already have six more lessons scheduled to be uploaded and I still have ideas for more than a hundred drills. Content is not a problem. It’s today’s technology that I am still learning!” he added.

Mr. Tang’s videos and livestreams consist of demonstration of basketball fundamentals and drills (e.g. finger touches, ball slaps, swings and squeezes, ball toss, toss with clap, movement around the head, waist and legs, plus the reverse) and exercise regimens to encourage an active lifestyle in the time of COVID-19.

“At the moment, I will focus on basketball-related wellness and fitness. Interested individuals may apply this as an exercise of sorts.” Mr. Tang said.

Meanwhile, even if he is busying himself with his online sports clinic, Mr. Tang said work for him as Blazers coach continues even if the team is temporarily unable to collectively train in a single facility.

The CSB coach, who played for the De La Salle Green Archers in college and had a solid career in the Philippine Basketball Association after, said he is doing his coaching by way of Web sessions, which include ensuring the wellness and nutrition of their players.

He is also communicating with the other Blazers coaches at least three times a week so that they will be on top of things.

In Season 95 of the National Collegiate Athletic Association, CSB finished with a 9-9 record, good for fifth place, and missed the playoffs. — Michael Angelo S. Murillo

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