ENES Kanter of the Oklahoma City Thunder gave his simple piece of advice to all Filipino basketball players who are continuously chasing their dreams.
“First, they should have a big dream. Second, they have to work for it. You have to give yourself 100%. There’s gonna be people out there and they’re not gonna believe, so you just prove them wrong by working really hard. Education is number one. Never leave school, stay in school and do your work,” the big man said during his Thursday visit at the Fountain International School in San Juan.
Kanter, whose visit to the Philippines was made possible by FIS, gave gifts and medicines to the White Cross Orphanage through his very own charity called Light Foundation.
He also gave words of inspirations to students of FIS, some of whom are scholars of the school and victims of typhoon Yolanda.
“If they believe in something, they can do it. But they have to believe in themselves. My only reason is to give these young guys the confidence,” Kanter said.
The Turkish national also shared his thoughts on the current NBA season.
Kanter thinks his teammate Russell Westbrook deserves the Most Valuable Player award this season, despite their early exit in the playoffs.
“I cannot say enough about him. He’s an amazing guy. He helps everybody. He helps his teammates, his coaches. And one thing that is special about him is he makes himself better and he makes everybody better and that’s what special about playing with Russ. I feel like he deserves the MVP,” the 6’11” center said.
When asked about on who he thinks is the greatest basketball player ever, Kanter said Michael Jordan is the best of all time. But right now, he said Westbrook is the best player in the league.
“I don’t think anybody can beat him one on one. I’ve seen him on the court and off the court, people don’t know how hard he works. One thing about him is that he loves what he’s doing and he’s having fun,” Kanter said.
The big man said he enjoyed his stay in the country and he is also aware how Filipinos love the sport basketball.
“I feel like you have the best fans all around the world. Everybody’s crazy about basketball. I feel like more NBA players will visit this country. It’s amazing. People are really warm, they’re nice people, they’re really welcoming,” Kanter said.
The Fountain International School which hosted his arrival in the country is planning to build a bigger school in the next few years and Kanter promised to be back, with some of his teammates.
“When they open it, I promise I will return along with some of my teammates,” Kanter vowed.