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PBA: Uytengsu proud of transparency, honesty in running Alaska

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Camille B. Naredo, ABS-CBN News

<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img alt="The Alaska Aces in the 2021 PBA Philippine Cup. PBA Media Bureau." src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2022/sports/02/17/pba_alaska-aces.jpg"/><figcaption>The Alaska Aces in the 2021 PBA Philippine Cup. PBA Media Bureau.</figcaption></figure></div><p>MANILA, Philippines -- When Fred Uytengsu announced that the Alaska Aces are departing the PBA at the end of the season, questions about the franchise&#x27;s legacy and impact on the league were furthest on his mind.</p><p>Uytengsu and the Alaska Milk Corporation (AMC) joined the PBA in 1986, eventually becoming one of the league&#x27;s most storied franchises. They won 14 championships, including a Grand Slam, and featured some of Philippine basketball&#x27;s greatest players and imports.</p><p>Their journey will come to an end after the 2022 PBA Governors&#x27; Cup, although it remains to be seen what will happen to the Alaska franchise. It can be bought by another company, according to Uytengsu, but if no buyer emerges, the franchise reverts to the league.</p><p>In the meantime, the Aces will continue to play: they are in action on Thursday against the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters. Uytengsu has expressed his hope that they would exit on a high note, possibly with a 15th PBA championship.</p><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/sports/02/16/22/alaska-aces-to-leave-pba">READ: Alaska Aces to leave PBA</a></li>	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/sports/02/16/22/pba-in-final-conference-alaska-eyes-15th-championship">READ: In final conference, Alaska eyes 15th championship</a></li></ul><p>But when asked about the legacy that Alaska will leave in the PBA, Uytengsu believes it&#x27;s a subject better left to those who spent years chronicling the team&#x27;s journey in the league.</p><p>&quot;What I was thinking about at the moment, my concern was how do we help our players moving forward, the coaching staff,&quot; said Uytengsu. &quot;That&#x27;s my first priority.&quot;</p><p>&quot;I think you all in sports media will make those decisions on what does Alaska mean to the fans that we developed over the years,&quot; he added.</p><p>Still, Uytengsu takes pride in how they have run their team through their 36 years in the PBA, especially as one of the league&#x27;s &quot;independent&quot; teams.</p><p>&quot;I think we tried to be very respectful of the way we participated in the league,&quot; said Uytengsu. &quot;I think we did things honorably, and would I change anything? It&#x27;s really hard to say.&quot;</p><p>&quot;(But) I&#x27;m proud of the way we ran the franchise. I&#x27;m proud of our transparency and our honesty,&quot; he added.</p><div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img alt="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2022/sports/02/16/20220216_pba.jpg" src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2022/sports/02/16/20220216_pba.jpg"/></figure></div><p>For many years -- particularly during their dominant stretch in the 1990s -- Alaska also cultivated a reputation for wholesomeness. It was a conscious decision, said Uytengsu, given the product that they were marketing.</p><p>&quot;When we first started the franchise, we had to be a wholesome team, because we were selling milk to children,&quot; he pointed out. &quot;So we had to be the &#x27;good boys,&#x27; if you will.&quot;</p><p>&quot;And we tried to promote that with our players. We told them that they weren&#x27;t just professional basketball players, but they were ambassadors for our brand, on and off the court,&quot; he explained. &quot;We tried to also replicate that behavior in the way we conducted ourselves in the boardroom.&quot;</p><p>&quot;The wholesomeness and winning with integrity, I hope, are some of those legacies that we leave behind.&quot;</p><p>Behind these principles, the Aces experienced great success. Their 14 championships are tied for second most by a team in the PBA, just behind the San Miguel Beermen, another preeminent franchise. In 35 seasons, they made 31 finals appearances, most recently in the 2018 Governors&#x27; Cup.</p><p>&quot;Could we have done a better job? We could always do better,&quot; said Uyengsu. &quot;My favorite saying is, &#x27;good enough never is.&#x27;&quot;</p><p>&quot;(But) we felt that we tried to do the right thing. We always wanted to win with integrity. We tried to treat players friendly, we tried to respect our opponents,&quot; he also said.</p><p>&quot;Hopefully, history would judge that we did things the right way at Alaska.&quot;</p><div><strong>RELATED VIDEO:</strong></div><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen" frameBorder="0" height="100%" id="ivsplayer01" scrolling="no" src="https://player.ivideosmart.com/ivsplayer/v4/dist/html/iframe-src.html?iframeid=ivsplayer01&amp;key=e8c22c015ca9eafa76f1e3edfa03c603&amp;spid=3001339&amp;vid=1929960" width="100%"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more in <a href="//www.iwantv.com.ph/">iWantv</a> or <a href="//tfc.tv/">TFC.tv</a></div>

PBA: Uytengsu proud of transparency, honesty in running Alaska

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PBA: Uytengsu proud of transparency, honesty in running Alaska

Camille B. Naredo,

ABS-CBN News

Published Feb 17, 2022 04:04 PM PHT

Read More:

basketball

PBA

Alaska Aces

Fred Uytengsu

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