A father of an NBA superstar would, most of the time, never get as much attention as his popular son gets.

But for Joe “Jellybean” Bryant, the coach of the Bangkok Cobras of the ASEAN Basketball League, the case could be different in the Philippines.

At the end of the Cobras’ game against the AirAsia Philippine Patriots at the San Juan GymSaturday, several Filipino fans asked Bryant for a picture even when his players were already in the dugout to change. He was also interviewed by a TV5 news crew.

Bryant knows that it’s a sign of how beloved his son is in the Philippines.

“I know it’s Pacquiao city but everybody loves Kobe also,” Bryant said.

Even though he’s known as the father of Los Angeles Lakers star Kobe Bryant, his credentials are also impressive during his heyday as a player.

He played four years from 1975 to 1979 with the Philadelphia 76ers, where Julius Erving was his teammate. He then played for the San Diego Clippers and the Houston Rockets before heading to Italy in 1984 where Kobe grew up as a child.

Coaching is nothing new to Bryant. His last coaching stint was with the Los Angeles Sparks of the WNBA last year.

The older Bryant has heard a lot of good things about the Philippines through Kobe, a three-time Manila visitor.

“Kobe loves it here and [the Filipinos] love him here,” Bryant said after the game. “I remember when he came here a couple of times. He always speaks well of the country. My wife came in Kobe’s first trip and she said, it was crazy.”

Bryant arrived in the country to see his team for the very first time. He got the coaching job from a mutual friend of the Cobras general manager.

“He said to their GM that if you want to start a new team and make the locals better, get Mr. Bryant,” he said.

Bryant had led a Japanese team to the finals of their local league. Despite their 86-58 loss to the Patriots, he also has envisions of doing the same thing with the Cobras, who have FilipinoMarvin Cruz in the line-up.

“I want to make the Thailand players better and play at a certain level. Even with this loss, it’s basketball. There’s always another day,” said Bryant.

When asked about the Filipino fans, Bryant said that he will always be grateful for the outpouring love they give to his son, whose most recent visit to Manila last year saw him with fellow NBA superstars in the SMART Ultimate All-Star Weekend. interaksyon.com