When former NBA superstar Dwight Howard was asked what made him decide to fly to Manila and join Strong Group Athletics for the upcoming Dubai International Basketball Championship, he thought for a moment before answering.
"At first I thought it was just Jollibee," he said. "But then I saw all the fans.
"I went to Thailand on a visit last year, and I ran into a lot of Filipinos out there. And they said, 'You gotta come back to the Philippines. We love you.' And I said, 'You know what, I gotta come back.' So when Dray (Blatche) called me and asked me, I told him I'll be free and I'll make it possible."
This is Howard's third visit to the Philippines, following an NBA preseason game with the Houston Rockets in 2013 and an NBA offseason promotional event with Luke Walton in 2005, and he says nothing's changed in terms of the fans' passion.
"It's the perfect time to be here," he said. "I've always enjoyed the Filipino fans. I have some Filipino fans in the States. So being able to come here and represent all the Filipinos is a great honor, and I take pride in it.
"Now that I'm here, I'm looking forward to spending time with the fans. I've seen a lot of fans so far, greeted a lot of fans, signed a lot of autographs, taken a lot of pictures. But it's okay. I love it.
"Even before I came, people on TikTok, Instagram, going around different places in the world, I've always run into a lot of Filipino fans. I'd go to a couple of Filipino restaurants and they'd always say, 'Hey you've got to come back to the Philippines.'"
Howard will be teaming with Blatche, former NBA guard Andre Roberson, one-time PBA import McKenzie Moore, ex-Gilas Pilipinas players Justin Baltazar and Jordan Heading, UP Fighting Maroons point guard JD Cagulangan, reigning UAAP MVP Kevin Quiambao, La Salle Green Archers guard Francis Escandor, and College of St. Benilde players Tony Ynot, Allen Liwag and Justine Sanchez for Strong Group in the annual tournament featuring club teams from the Middle East.
The team is coached by CSB coach Charles Tiu, with Australian national coach Brian Goorjian as consultant. Tiu said he's had no issues with Howard.
"He listens to everything we've asked," Tiu said. "I feel we have a better set of imports now, a more solid team. We just have to get in shape.
"We're just taking it slow, one day at a time, make sure nobody gets hurt. I think we have a great group of guys and I'm so happy we have coach Brian here to help me out."
Howard was all praises for the team's coaching staff, sharing: "Coach Brian brings a lot of energy every day in practice. (He is) one of the Australian legends of basketball. I love the energy that he brings, the passion that he brings to the game, the knowledge that he brings to the game.
"Charles is very much a student of the game as well. He's a lot younger than I but, for him to be a head coach and for him to do what he's done with basketball and bring the guys here and expanding the game in the Philippines and worldwide, it's very amazing. So I'm happy to be a part of that."
Last year, Strong Group failed to advance past the quarterfinals after center Ange Kouame fell ill.
With two legitimate former NBA big men and Howard and Blatche onboard this year, Tiu is hoping they go all the way this time.
"They're really good. They're the two loudest players on the court," he revealed.
"We always talk about communicating. Dwight's so great, so vocal. Same thing with Andray. He's somebody who right now has more of that veteran, leader role. He's matured so much, so he's always helping and guiding the other guys.
"They're a big plus to my team, really a big weight off my shoulders. When we signed Dwight, people were saying 'He's gonna give you so much problems'. But he hasn't given us any problem. He's been really supportive of what we've been doing."
Blatche says Howard's presence is definitely a big plus, and he's happy both of them are finally on the same team, stating: "This is huge for us. This is huge. (He's an) NBA All-Star, should be NBA Hall-of-Famer, (and he is) a lot of help. (He) should be a lot of help for us.
"We've played against each other for 20 years now, since high school. It's great to actually be teammates for once."
Howard, who most recently played in Taiwan, has also been very vocal on social media about playing in the PBA, and he hopes Blatche can eventually join him.
"I'm eligible for the PBA," he added. "I think they've got to change the height requirement. I'm 6-foot-9 without shoes.
"Hopefully they do that so that guys like Dray can come back and play as well. I know he's been wanting to play here in the PBA. If they change the height requirement, maybe we'll see twin towers here in the Philippines."
Blatche, though, is less optimistic, saying: "I've been trying to get into the PBA for years. They would not let me play. I don't think it's gonna happen. I gave up hope."