Retired cager Cholo Villanueva, influenced by four great coaches during his 16-year career as a player, is paying it forward.
A basketball camp that’s named after him, is developing the next generation of young players, who could someday do well in the sport.
The drills and the practices that the camp conducts every summer for the last five years, help kids aged 4 to 16 years old develop their game.
“The discipline of practice makes everything perfect. Doing things again and again for you to get better at it. Those are the things that I have learned from the coaches,” said Villanueva, during a break in the drills held at the CholoCamp one Friday afternoon at the Colegio de San Agustin covered courts in Dasmarinas Village, Makati City.
During his time in college, Villanueva played under Franz Pumaren when he was in La Salle, under Nestor Lee while with Colegio San Agustin in his high school days, and under Yeng Guiao with Air21 during his time as a professional in the Philippine Basketball Association.
When he retired, he became an assistant coach for the Jose Rizal University Heavy Bombers as Vergel Meneses took him under his wings.
Now, there are 12 coaches helping run his camp, which he started in a small village court back in 2010. Called Archers’ Camp, the classes only had 50 students, with Villanueva managing it during his spare time.
The turnout was good and there was a clamor for more. So he had another one the following year. Since then, more students have been turning up.
“Everything goes through hard work. There is no shortcut to anything,” stated Villanueva.
Villanueva, now 37, is currently the head coach of Team Makati in the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League and the La Salle Lady Archers.
His two jobs kept him from accepting the head coaching job of the JRU Heavy Bombers in the National Collegiate Athletic Association last month.
The Heavy Bombers will now be handled by Louie Gonzales, who led the Green Archers last year.
Villanueva also had a chance to join the coaching staff of the Green Archers under Pumaren.
