Former PBA import Bobby Parks Sr. likened his son's situation with the National University (NU) Bulldogs to Michael Jordan's early years with the Chicago Bulls.

Bobby Ray Parks Jr. was named the most valuable player (MVP) of UAAP Season 74 even if the NU Bulldogs failed to make it to the Final 4.

The team finished with a 6-8 record and placed fifth in the 8-team league.

"It's kinda like Michael Jordan with Bulls, the elder Parks said in an interview with dzMM's "Sports Talk."

"In the first year, he had to score a lot until they slowly built pieces around him. I think it's a similar situation."

Parks Sr. made it clear, however, that he was not comparing his son with the NBA legend.

"Of course, there's only one Michael Jordan. I'm comparing the situation [not the players]," he said.

Although Jordan eventually won six championships with the Chicago Bulls, he first had to endure several seasons of frustration before finally breaking through.

Parks Sr. believes that his son is in a similar place.

"Coming into NU, you know NU has not been very productive in terms of winning and making good showings in the UAAP," he said, adding, "With him (Parks Jr.) coming in like this, it's kind of like building a foundation, the beginning of something."

Parks Jr. is the first player from a non-Final 4 team to win the MVP award.

Improvement

Both father and son acknowledge the need for improvement if the NU Bulldogs want to compete for the UAAP title in the next seasons.

The younger Parks believes that this will come with experience.

"This season, we had nine rookies," Parks Jr. said. "So we got all the rookie jitters out, just feeling how to play in the UAAP."

He added, "The UAAP is just tough competition. It's just more about adjusting ourselves and building the chemistry together. Of course, you can add more players, talented, taller, stronger. But it boils down to us as a team and how we perform."


Individual game
 
But Parks Jr. knows that his team will only go as far as he can take them, which is why he is determined to continue improving his individual game despite already being one of the best players in the UAAP.

"Kailangan walang weakness. So all-around, kailangan maging better. Pwede naman mag-improve on everything," he said.

He then enumerated the areas he wants to work on.

"Ball handling, shooting, mid-range, three-points, kahit post-up game, kailangan matutunan ko," Parks Jr. said.

"Kung wala akong weakness, anong aatakihin ng kalaban?"

source: abs-cbnNEWS