Manny Pacquiao's Secret Weapon: A Basketball Jones

One thing about Manny Pacquiao's non-fight with Joshua Clootey last weekend is that anyone who stayed with it the whole twelve rounds had a lot of time to discuss any number of things other than what was going on in the the ring. 

At my household those conversations included the upcoming Mayweather-Mosley fight, the possibility of a Mayweather-Pacquiao fight in the fall, the quality and price of local eating establishments (I hear the new Mexicatessen up on Colorado Blvd. is amazing), and finally, basketball.

Not in terms of the Lakers and the Cavs...basketball in terms of Manny Pacquiao.

Manny loves to play basketball. So much so that his on-court antics have caused arguments in past training camps between the Pac-Man and his trainers. 

At one point, strength coach Alex Ariza tried to get Pacquiao to stop playing all together, and Manny pretty much told Ariza where he could go. As in, Manny wasn't going to stop, no matter what Ariza thought.

Since that time, Freddy Roach has stepped in between Manny and his conditioning coaches. The current rules are Manny can play as much basketball as he wants as long as he stops playing in the last weeks before a bout.

Not only do I think that was the best thing in terms of keeping the peace among the many handlers in Team Pacquaio, but I also think Manny's basketball skills are one of the reasons he's the fighter he is today.

Everyone who has seen Pac-Man fight in the last few years has marveled at the way Manny comes at fighters from all kinds of angles. Angles that no other fighter has ever had before.

I believe a lot of it comes from basketball.

I say this after watching this last fight and noticing his footwork and his balance. It's much more Steve Nash and Brandon Jennings than it is Sugar Ray Leonard.

Not only that, the only other fighter I have ever seen with Manny's footwork was Roy Jones, Jr. in his prime. Back in the nineties, Jones showed similar moves and instincts in the ring.

Jones was also a prolific b-baller, including a stint as a backup point guard in the fledgling U.S. Basketball League. A pro league for players 6'3'' and under.

Jones was called out by some boxing experts for playing round-ball at the time. Many of these so-called experts said he should quit entirely while he was still boxing. 

I think those experts were wrong then, and they are wrong now. 

I can really only think of two similarities between the U.S. born Jones and the Filipino icon Manny. Both men love to play basketball, and they both went on to win the BWAA's last two Fighter of the Decade awards.

I think that all that needs to be said on the subject.