Tulad ng ibang Pinoy, mahilig din sa basketball si Rene “The Challenger” Catalan.

Bago pa man siya mahilig sa wushu at martial arts, ang 40 anyos ay isang malaking basketball fan na bumilib sa dating PBA MVP Johnny Abarrientos na marami ring napahangang Pinoy noong 90’s.

“Just like other kids, I also grew up playing basketball in the streets. Then I go home and watch PBA basketball at home with my family,” bahagi ni Catalan.

“I like Abarrientos a lot because of his intelligence inside the court. He can score and distribute the ball to his teammates without any problem.”

'Pikon daw?' UAAP fan na nag-dirty finger, agaw-eksena sa San Juan Arena!

Matagal nang retirado si Abarrientos pero sinusundan pa rin niya ang sport pero ngayon ay NBA na ang pinapanood niya at naging fan naman siya ng dating MVP ng Los Angeles Lakers’, si LeBron James.

Kahit ang nalalapit niyang laban sa dating ONE Strawweight World Champion na si Yoshitaka “Nobita” Naito sa ONE: REIGN OF VALOR ay di makapipigil sa kanya na manood ng NBA All-Star Game ngayong linggo.

SI James at ang kanyang team ang mangunguna laban sa MVP candidate na si Giannis Antetokounmpo at ang kanyang team.

“I’m a big fan of LeBron James. Other than his skills inside the court, I think he also drafted better teammates in this year's All-Star game,” sabi niya.

“Basketball is a part Filipino lives, especially the youth in this generation,” sabi ni Catalan. “I’m sure that all eyes will be on their TV screens this weekend to watch the NBA All-Star game.”