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Ahead of Japan stint, Parks keeps dad's advice in mind

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Camille B. Naredo, ABS-CBN News

<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img alt="Ray Parks Jr. in action for TNT in the 2020 PBA Philippine Cup. PBA Media Bureau." src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2021/sports/09/01/pba-images15.jpg"/><figcaption>Ray Parks Jr. in action for TNT in the 2020 PBA Philippine Cup. <em>PBA Media Bureau.</em></figcaption></figure></div><p>MANILA, Philippines -- As he prepares to take the next step in his basketball career, Ray Parks Jr. continues to live by the lessons that his father, legendary PBA import Bobby Ray Parks, taught him.</p><p>After securing a release from TNT Tropang GIGA and the PBA, Parks signed to play as an Asian import for B.League side Nagoya Diamond Dolphins in Japan.</p><p>There, he hopes to continue to live up to the remarkable legacy left by his father, who is widely regarded as one of the greatest imports that the PBA has ever seen. Parks Sr. was a seven-time Best Import in the PBA, and upon his death in 2013, the league renamed the award in his honor.</p><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/sports/08/24/21/ray-parks-signs-with-nagoya-dolphins-in-bleague">READ: Ray Parks signs with Nagoya Dolphins in B.League</a></li></ul><p>&quot;At the end of the day, I am an extension of my father,&quot; the younger Parks told former PBA commissioner Noli Eala on his &quot;Power and Play&quot; sports program.</p><p>&quot;I am the next level, I am another chapter into it. So, I just wanna bring honor to the Parks family name, and also to his legacy and to my own legacy,&quot; he added.</p><p>Parks has played abroad before, notably in the NBA G League for the Texas Legends. Yet even when he was playing as a local -- for Alab Pilipinas in the ASEAN Basketball League, for instance -- he has always felt a responsibility to play as an import.</p><p>&quot;Every time I step on the court, I had to play like an import,&quot; said Parks, who won two Most Valuable Player awards as a National University player in the UAAP. &quot;Whether it may be in the ABL, whether it may be in the G League, whether it may be in the PBA, and quite frankly now, now it&#x27;s just more of like, a title.&quot;</p><p>&quot;I felt like I&#x27;ve been doing the responsibilities needed of an import,&quot; he said.</p><p>Still, it gives him a special feeling of pride to be an &quot;official&quot; import now, to fulfill the same role that his father did for the Shell franchise in his PBA career. And as he prepares for his first season in Nagoya, the advice that his father gave him growing up continues to guide Parks.</p><p>&quot;He would just tell me, continue to be a professional in what I do,&quot; said Parks. &quot;And you know, try and get a bucket, because if not… they&#x27;ll ship you out of there real quick.&quot;</p><p>&quot;Everybody wants to be in your spot, and it&#x27;s a blessing to have your spot, so continue to prove yourself each and every time you step on the floor,&quot; he added.</p><p>&quot;The best way he put it is, put on a show. That&#x27;s what he always says, put on a show.&quot;</p><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/sports/08/30/21/parks-cant-wait-to-play-in-front-of-pinoys-in-japan">READ: Parks can&#x27;t wait to play in front of Pinoys in Japan</a></li>	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/sports/08/29/21/ray-parks-still-wants-to-play-for-gilas-pilipinas">READ: Ray Parks still wants to play for Gilas Pilipinas</a></li></ul><p>The elder Parks passed away on March 30, 2013 due to lung cancer.</p><p>His son, for his part, chased his NBA dream before declaring for the PBA Rookie Draft in 2018 where he became the second overall pick. He was traded to TNT in 2019 and steered them to the finals of the 2020 PBA Philippine Cup last year.</p><p>In March 2021, he announced that he will sit out the upcoming PBA season for family reasons. It was only in July, after a contract standoff, that the TNT franchise released him. However, they still own his rights should he return to the PBA.</p><div><strong>FROM THE ARCHIVES:</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=1673428" 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>

Ray Parks Jr. continues to live by the lessons that his father, legendary PBA import Bobby Ray Parks, taught him.

Ahead of Japan stint, Parks keeps dad's advice in mind

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Ahead of Japan stint, Parks keeps dad's advice in mind

Camille B. Naredo,

ABS-CBN News

Published Sep 01, 2021 02:06 PM PHT

Read More:

basketball

Ray Parks Jr.

Ray Parks

Bobby Ray Parks Sr.

Nagoya Diamond Dolphins

Japan B.League

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