Carey leaves inspiring legacy

It’s unusual for a pro basketball player to stay for as long as 17 years with just one franchise but Harvey Carey did that in a PBA career that started in 2003 and ended in the Clark bubble last year. When the pandemic struck, it was difficult for Carey to keep his wife November and their two sons Trey, 12, and Harlem, 6, stuck at home in Manila so he decided to wait out the situation here alone while his family went back to San Francisco. Tomorrow night, Carey will leave to rejoin his wife and sons. The Fil-Am will explore coaching opportunities and working with kids in the Bay Area but the door will always be open to come back when things return to normal.

“Coming to the Philippines changed my life,” said Carey, 42. “It’s where I met my wife who’s from Pampanga but migrated to the US when she was seven. She was vacationing in Manila when we met. It’s where my kids were born. It’s where I’ve lived the last 17 years. It’s where my Filipino relatives live. I was born in the US but the Philippines is home, too.”

Carey’s first love was baseball which he played when he was eight. But he drifted towards basketball in high school, influenced by his Filipino coach Joe (Fish) Payongayong who told him about the PBA. Carey played hoops at Sonoma State then decided to try his luck in the PBA with other Fil-Ams Jimmy Alapag and Mike Cortez. Jeff Cariaso, then playing for Coca-Cola, welcomed Carey to Manila and helped in his transition. “I owe Jeff a lot and would’ve loved to play with him but I went to TNT in the draft,” he said. “Two other guys I would’ve loved to play with were Eric Menk and Johnny Abarrientos. At TNT, Jimmy and I stayed with Asi (Taulava) for a while and we had a lot of great teammates like Vic Pablo, Bong Ravena, Donbel Belano, Noli Locsin, Mark Telan and Kuya Pat Fran.”

Carey earned a reputation as a blue collar worker, hard-nosed, rugged, never dirty. “I learned to work hard from my parents,” he said.  “My dad was a bus driver for 30 years and my mom worked at the post office for 20. They never complained about the hours they worked and that stuck with me. To this day, I wake up at 5 a.m., like I’m on autopilot, to do my workouts. In my career, I admit I wasn’t the most skilled guy on my team but I made sure I worked the hardest. I’ve been blessed with awesome teammates like Jimmy, Jayson Castro and Jared Dillinger. I loved all my teammates but especially Jimmy, we were best men at our weddings, ninongs to our kids. He was the face and rock of our franchise.”

Of the players he defended, Carey singled out Ranidel de Ocampo, Kerby Raymundo and Danny Seigle as the toughest. “Ranidel was with Air21, so hard to read his moves,” he said. “Kerby was a terror, could put the ball on the floor, too while Danny was a walking mismatch, he could do it all at 6-7 with an incredible hang time and a high basketball IQ.” He said C. J. Perez, Matthew Wright, Paul Lee and Kiefer Ravena are the stars to carry the PBA to the next generation. Regarding his import teammates, Carey said Ivan Johnson was an amazing player despite his bad boy reputation, Jerald Honeycutt was highly skilled, Terrence Jones and K. J. McDaniel were incredible but the best was Paul Harris.

Late in his career, Carey said he never expected to face NBA veteran Lance Stephenson in the EASL Terrific 12 in Macau two years ago. “I was 40 and I guarded Lance who I thought was just clowning but wow, that guy can play,” he said. “I was gassed before I knew it. It was quite an experience playing international ball. With TNT, we traveled to train in Serbia, Korea, Australia, Italy and the US so I’m grateful for the exposure.”

Carey said he’ll never forget the Philippines. “My family kept me grounded, my parents, my sister Danelle, my wife and kids, my relatives in Paco, I couldn’t have won seven PBA championships, played 17 years for one franchise or survived the Clark bubble at 41 without them,” he said. “My dad’s turning 80 this year and his health is failing a bit so I’d like to be with him more. It’s time to open a new chapter in my life.”