Delly’s extended honeymoon

When Milwaukee Bucks guard Matthew Dellavedova flew in for a three-day visit to endorse sports footwear and apparel brand Peak last week, he came with his wife Anna Schroeder. They were married in Milwaukee in a private ceremony attended by about 120 guests last July 1 so the trip to Manila was part of their honeymoon.

Dellavedova, whose nickname is Delly, arrived with his wife and manager Bruce Kaider on a flight from San Francisco via Korea last Thursday night. While in town, Delly made sure he had at least one hour of practice shooting on a court near the Conrad Hotel where he stayed. Jay Gervasio, CEO of Pro Star which distributes Peak in the country, said he was impressed with Delly’s discipline. 

Delly, 26, met his wife in religion class at St. Mary’s College in Moraga, California. Delly was on the varsity basketball team while Anna played volleyball. Since the basketball and volleyball teams used the same practice court on campus, they often bumped into each other. But Anna said it wasn’t until they were classmates that Delly asked her out on a date. St. Mary’s is run by La Salle Christian Brothers but unlike the Green Archers who wear green uniforms, Delly said his varsity colors were blue and red.

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At their wedding, Delly’s best man was Mitchell Young, a childhood friend who also attended St. Mary’s and now plays for the Brisbane Bullets in the Australian league. Anna said half the guests were Australians and the other half, Americans. From Manila, Delly’s traveling party went to Bangkok for a Peak camp. The group will be in Australia this week before returning to the US at the end of the month. The trip to Australia will primarily be to visit family but Delly said he also plans to sit down with Boomers national coach Andrej Lemanis to talk about the FIBA Asia Cup and the FIBA Asia/Pacific qualifiers. 

Delly is one of seven NBA players signed to Peak contracts. The others include Dwight Howard, George Hill, Milos Teodosic and Tony Parker. Peak Philippines president Michael Chenglay said the Chinese brand has grown exponentially around the world and the Filipino market is keeping pace. There are 15 national basketball teams, including Australia and Serbia, outfitted by Peak and 12 countries will wear Peak jerseys at the next Winter Olympics. Peak’s Christin Wu said the brand’s strong point is product design with over 100 employees focused on this area in offices in China, US and South Korea. In basketball, Wu said Peak prides itself with models for both 5x5 and 3x3.

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Delly wasn’t picked in the 2013 NBA draft but has now seen action in four seasons, his first three with Cleveland. He joined the Milwaukee Bucks last season. Twice, Delly went to the NBA Finals with the Cavs, once losing to Golden State and once winning over the Warriors. “It was a great experience with some unbelievable memories playing in the Finals but I think we have a great opportunity now with the Bucks,” he said. “I really believe we can get to the Finals and do something special. We’ve got a lot of great young talent and if everyone can stick together and keep growing, it’s going to be pretty good. Anytime Jabari (Parker) is on the floor, it definitely makes a difference. He’s so explosive as a scorer. He can just put the ball in the basket. He’s been working extremely hard in rehab and he’ll come back stronger than before. Malcolm (Brogdon), he’s mature, not your typical rookie who’s done one year in college. He’s a true professional, a great teammate and makes the game easier when he’s out on the floor. He was named Rookie of the Year. I’m also lucky to play with Giannis (Antetokounmpo) right now. I know he wants to get to a high level and that’s what he’s working for.”

As an NBA career 83.1 percent free throw shooter, Delly said his secret is focus. “The longer you look at the rim, the better,” he said. “Don’t just kind of dribble and shoot looking up. As long as you keep the same routine, just practice, you should improve.” Delly follows a long list of outstanding Australian free throw shooters like all-time greats Andrew Gaze and Eddie Palubinskas.