When Thirdy Ravena chose to turn pro in 2020, he was flying high.
Thirdy left Ateneo as a three-time UAAP champion and three-time Finals MVP. He was the Philippine Sportswriters Association’s Mr. Basketball. Ravena was easily the year’s top prospect, and if there was a PBA Draft that year he would have been no. 1, or a very high pick at least.
He wasn’t. There was no PBA Draft in 2020, and he would’t have been there anyway because instead of staying home, the high-flying Ravena decided to spread his wings elsewhere, choosing to become the pioneer in the Asian Quota Player movement by signing with the B.League’s San-en NeoPhoenix.
Thirdy’s move to Japan was groundbreaking, and his presence certainly boosted his team and the B.League’s popularity. But his presence alone in that first season in 2020-21 didn’t necessarily lead to an increase in wins for San-en.
The floundering NeoPhoenix, who barely avoided relegation as the B.League chose to momentarily scrap the system due to the pandemic, went from five wins the previous year to just 12 in Ravena’s rookie season.
Thirdy himself only appeared in five of those wins. He also only played a total of 18 games, as Ravena dealt with personal setbacks that included suffering a hand injury and a bout against COVID-19.
“The first three seasons, especially the first two seasons, weren’t really the best ones. We lost more than we won,” Ravena said in an interview released by San-en as the team prepares for a B.League playoff berth in the 2023-24 season, Thirdy’s fourth in Japan.
After that somewhat horror first season in Japan, Ravena had a personal bounce back in Year 2 but the NeoPhoenix somehow got worse, winning two less games.
But by Year 3, the NeoPhoenix were slowly on the rise. Thirdy appeared in all 60 regular season games, and San-en signed former Chiba Jets champion coach Atsushi Ono, as well as former league MVP Kosuke Kanamaru, in the offseason.
While it was an up-and-down campaign, the NeoPhoenix won 23 games in 2022-23, more than Ravena’s first two years combined.
The current 2023-24 season though is where San-en put it all together.
[RELATED: Thirdy Ravena's San-en NeoPhoenix crowned B.League Central Conference champions]
"I’ve seen it all, from when we were one of the worst teams to now, the conference champions,” Ravena said.
“It’s a big jump,” he added.
In Year 4 of Thirdy’s Japan journey, his NeoPhoenix are going to the Playoffs as the no. 2 seed and newly-crowned Central Conference Champions.
San-en doubled its win count from the previous season and finished with a 46-14 record. At one point this year, the NeoPhoenix set a franchise record by winning 16 straight games.
Thirdy himself is having a career year, averaging 12.6 points per game on 52.2 percent shooting. Not counting their world imports, Ravena is the NeoPhoenix’s leading scorer.
[RELATED: Thirdy Ravena leads all scorers as NeoPhoenix burn Tokyo in marquee B.League matchup]
"It feels like an accomplishment, a very big accomplishment for me,” Ravena said on his and San-en’s breakthrough season.
“It’s been something that I’ve always wanted to accomplish ever since I got to Japan. You know, coming in my goal was to win with the club [and] see where we could go the furthest,” he added.
Considering his own body of work and his team’s record, Ravena is enjoying the best season any Filipino Asian Quota Player has had in Japan.
However, it all could have been cut short, especially when you factor in the rough start.
The success this season is testament to the patience and perseverance of both Thirdy and the NeoPhoenix, and that thought is not lost in Ravena’s mind.
[RELATED: B.League Playoffs: Thirdy Ravena's NeoPhoenix, Ray Parks Jr.'s Diamond Dolphins share same bracket]
"I’d like to say that I’ve played better than how I did last season, it’s because of the trust of the coaching stuff and the trust of my teammates,” Thirdy said.
“They trusted me to do my role with the team. They were very patient with me, of course I always make mistakes. People make mistakes, it’s not always perfect. But the fact that we try our best to fill the role that we have, that makes me feel like I’ve done a bit of a better job this season,” Ravena added.
Patience certainly applies to Thirdy.
From the 2020-21 team, Thirdy is one of only three players still left in San-en, and one of them, reserve forward Yu Tatsumi was only a signed amateur player in 2020.
Ravena can repay some, if not most of that trust, by following up a breakthrough season with a strong first playoff run. Thirdy knows that and he’s trying to be as ready as he can be.
“It’s not yet over. I haven’t been to the Playoffs yet, so I have to be as prepared as I could for those games because I know they’re gonna be way tougher,” he said.
“I trust the coaching staff, they’ve already proven themselves and know how to win. I just try to be more prepared, physically and mentally prepared. The schedule is gonna be tight and teams are stronger, so we have to be ready.”
The NeoPhoenix open the 2024 B.League Playoffs at home against the Hiroshima Dragonfiles on May 11.