MANILA, Philippines — Bay Area Dragons import and five-year NBA veteran Andrew Nicholson feels right at home in the Philippines. He’s in town to play for guest team Bay Area in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup starting Sept. 21. Nicholson used to take breaks in Boracay and El Nido during his three-year stint in the Chinese league and in Toronto, owns two Filipino eateries.
“It’s always nice to come back to Manila,” said Nicholson who arrived here two weeks ago and is staying with the Dragons at the Shangri-La The Fort, BGC. “I’ve been over many times. I’m looking forward to playing in the PBA and it’s great to be part of it.” Nicholson singled out Matthew Wright as the PBA player whom he knows from way back. “Matt and I played two years together at St. Bonaventure University,” he said. “We’re both from Canada.”
Nicholson, 32, is no stranger to the international game. He has played for Canada in the FIBA Olympic qualifying tournament, FIBA AmeriCup, Pan American Games and FIBA Americas since 2013. Nicholson suited up in 285 regular season games for Orlando, Washington and Brooklyn in the NBA up to 2016-17, earning over $27 million. Nicholson was Orlando’s first round pick in the 2012 draft. Nicholson said his toughest NBA matchup was DeMarcus Cousins and his closest NBA teammate was Tobias Harris.
What connects Nicholson to the Filipino community in Toronto is his investment in two restaurants, Max Fried Chicken and the Crane Express which specializes in Filipino desserts like halo-halo. Nicholson said he’s a Tanduay distributor in Toronto, too. With the Dragons making Manila their home base during the EASL season, Nicholson said he’s excited to learn more about Filipino culture.