Erik Spoelstra Manila presser

MANILA, Philippines — No matter how stacked his schedule is, Miami Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra still found his way back in the Philippines – a country which he claims has a special place in his heart. And the 2012 NBA champion coach is proud to return.

“I gave my schedule to my assistant and we had a very busy schedule, but I told him to clear everything for the month of July or early August and find a way for me to be back here. I’m so thrilled to be back here,” Spoelstra told sports scribes in a well-attended press conference at the Marriott Hotel in Pasay City on Thursday (July 2).

Coach Spo, as he is fondly called, is set to conduct some basketball clinics during his stay. But what made his fourth official visit to the country extra-special is that he brought the Larry O' Brien championship trophy with him.

"I haven't seen the Larry O' Brien trophy for nearly a month. It's a thing of beauty," said an ecstatic Spoelstra.

His Philippine tour, backed chiefly by Gatorade, has been dubbed the “NBA Trophy Tour,” which the league said is aimed at sharing Spoelstra’s recent NBA championship with Filipinos.

“This place (Philippines) is so special for me in my heart. My heritage is very important to me. Our players in the NBA are aware of our passion for the sport and I’m proud of that,” the soft-spoken basketball mentor confessed.

“I hope we can make this an annual thing,” he added.

Spoelstra kept on gushing on the passion of the Filipino fans and told the press how much he and the team appreciate their support.

“We love our fans here. This is an excellent and unique opportunity for me to come here and share the joy we had last June winning the championship” said Spoelstra, who guided the Heat to a 4-1 conquest of the Oklahoma City Thunder to bag the NBA crown last June.

“I’m excited to spend time with all of you by sharing our joy and valuable lessons. I wish we had more time,” he added.

Spoelstra owns the distinction of becoming the first American coach of Asian lineage to win an NBA title, something he said hasn’t affected his down-to-earth persona.

 “Winning the championship hasn’t changed my life a great deal. I wanted to make sure I continue do the similar things as before. I don’t want to change my lifestyle, but it gave me more opportunity to give back more to the game,” Spoelstra said.

“But certainly, the recognition has changed. I have to wear baseball caps more often but I don’t have to wear any mustache yet,” a smiling Spo added, eliciting laughter from the audience.

Despite having the opportunity to coach one of the most talented teams in the league, Spoelstra remains cautious to make any proclamations like what his mentor Pat Riley did for the L.A. Lakers before him.

“You’re not going to get any promise or comment like my boss did some 20 plus years before me (laughs),” he said. “But we’ve already started the process of our journey to hopefully our second title. We've recruited a couple of great players and finished our summer program with our young players, we are ready to start our training camp with the veterans and we’re good to go.”

Filipinos have always dreamt of having a representative in the NBA, and Spoelstra – who started as a video coordinator for the Miami Heat in 1995 – believes that the day will come that a Filipino basketball player will finally make it to the NBA.

“The fact is basketball is now more a global game. We are well aware of our incredible fan base here in the Philippines. It staggers our players how popular we are here 10,000 miles away. So my question to your answer is, why not?” said Spoelstra.

"The world is changing. You are seeing people succeed where heritage doesn't matter. I hope this opens opportunities to a lot of people like me," he added. (Text by Aldo Avinante and Alder Almo/ Video by Cris Cayanan and Jhon Miguel)