Philippine Cup playoff revelation and Meralco rookie Brandon Bates proudly wears his passion for Star Wars like a badge of honor.
In a galaxy that is not far away, in fact we call it our own, one PBA success story embraces his love for Star Wars and all things sci-fi.
Philippine Cup playoff revelation and Meralco rookie Brandon Bates proudly wears his passion for the iconic franchise like a badge of honor.
Introduced to the epic series by his father in his younger years, Bates’ affection for Star Wars runs deep.
"I just loved it ever since,” Bates revealed in an interview with One Sports.
"I’m a huge sci-fi guy, like I love Star Trek, I love Star Wars, anything like that," he added.
"Anything” includes tattoos, as Bates sports a piece related to his favorite Star Wars character Qui-Gon Jinn from The Phantom Menace.
He has the Jedi’s lightsaber on his right arm, showing strong dedication to the saga.
"I love Qui-Gon Jinn,” Bates said, immediately pointing to his body art piece.
Brandon Bates has two Star Wars tattoos on his arms: Qui-Gon Jinn's lightsaber and the Millennium Falcon
He also the Millennium Falcon on his opposite arm, symbolizing hope and defiance as the iconic ship first appeared in the original trilogies starting with A New Hope.
Bates’ love for Star Wars isn't just skin-deep; it influences how he plays.
Like a Jedi striving for balance in the Force, Bates works to stabilize the Meralco Bolts' defense as they look to stand their ground against the all-conquering San Miguel Beermen in the PBA Philippine Cup Finals.
However, Bates also admittedly leans towards the dark side of the Force, whose qualities might be needed to push the Bolts to the title.
In the Sith Code, the dark forces of the Star Wars universe are taught, “Through power, I gain victory. Through victory, my chains are broken.”
Major parts of the Sith Code certainly mirror Bates and his team’s quest to be PBA champions, but the Meralco quest to win the Philippine Cup is anything but dark.
One can say it’s noble, as the Bolts franchise look to finally enter the PBA’s hall of champions after 13 years and four previous losses.
Jedi or a Sith, Bates, though conflicting, personifies both in his fandom and in his play as a promising PBA upstart.
He’s Meralco’s Darth Vader, basically.
"I wanna say Sith, but I’m a little bit of a nice guy. My parents would just tell me I’m too nice, so I’d say Jedi,” he said on his play style, when compared to the Star Wars franchise.
"I wanna say I’m a Jedi, but I think I’d fall too easily on the dark side, so definitely a Sith," he also remarked, when asked about his general affinity between good and evil in the Star Wars universe.
So yeah, that’s essentially Darth Vader. He is our world’s PBA Anakin Skywalker. Does his moment of redemption come in this Philippine Cup Finals series then?
We’ll find out soon enough.