By james art 31 October 2024 | 10:08 am
MANILA, Philippines — Meralco Bolts head coach Luigi Trillo said he is happy for Alan Durham as the big man has decided to retire from professional basketball, but expressed hope that he will reconsider.
News of the massive 36-year-old’s retirement broke a few days ago, after being sent to Meralco.
In a message to Philstar.com, Trillo said Durham wanted to spend more time with his children, prompting him to call it a career.
“He told me he had his moment in Japan when we played Ryukyu. The fans cheer. He said he misses his children. At this point, I think he wants to be with his five- and three-year-old kids,” the coach said.
However, Trillo stressed that the three-time PBA Best Import still has plenty of fuel in the tank.
“I hope he will reconsider. He is still young at 36 and I think he can help any organization. [But] happy for him that it was his decision,” he added.
Durham and Meralco reached the quarterfinals of the PBA Governors’ Cup after finishing as runners-up in Group A. But they were swept by Barangay Ginebra in the playoffs.
Durham then last played for Meralco in the East Asian Super League on October 16 when they faced the Ryukyu Golden Kings at the Okinawa Arena. The Bolts lost 77-74 against former Japanese B.League team Durham.
“Happy AD needs to come back to us and play. Again, I wish we had two more weeks for it. We opened the season in the first game and just made it to the championship. In my 25 years in the PBA, this has never happened,” the coach said.
“I think if we had two weeks and started with more training plus CJ [Cansino] or Alain [Maliksi] there as an extra spacer to guard the smaller lineups in the playoffs, maybe we would have performed better for Meralco fans and also for AD,” he added.
Trillo looked back on Durham’s career, stressing that playing for Meralco was “amazing for both him and the organization.”
“He really spread his wings here. He was the best import for 3 years, but he wouldn’t have flourished if it wasn’t for his teammates and staff helping him grow.”
Aside from Meralco, Durham also played for Barako Bull Energy in 2014. He led the Bolts to multiple PBA finals.