Ali Peek

Albert Henry "Ali" Peek (born February 13, 1975) is a Filipino-American former professional basketball player who played in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).

During his playing days, he played mostly at the center position, although he was also used as a power forward occasionally.

Peek was born in Hawaii but grew up in California.

His Filipino mother Marlene, traces her roots in Manila.

His grandfather, a member of the Philippine Constabulary, was from Tuguegarao, while his grandmother was from Ilocos Norte.

His biological father is French Creole.

Growing up, he watched Lakers games and played basketball in the parks.

Peek played for Hart High School in his high school years.

As a senior, he averaged 24.2 points and 15 rebounds, led Hart to a 17–10 record and was an All-star selection, All-Valley forward and Foothill League MVP.

In the title game against Schurr High School, he had a career-high 40 points and a school-record 23 rebounds.

He was However, he struggled academically, scoring the NCAA-required 700 on the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) after three previous attempts.

In 1992, Peek committed to St. Mary's College of California.

He was coached by Ernie Kent and was teammates with actor Mahershala Ali.

He played for St. Mary's College varsity team that represented and won for the United States the 1994 R. Williams Jones Cup championship in Taipei.

This would be his introduction to Asian basketball.

In his senior year, Peek suffered a microfracture in his knee and doctors said he had a 50-50 chance of playing like he used to.

He thought of joining the military but because he wanted to play, he worked on rehabbing his knee.

He was then contacted by his high school coach’s friend Maury Hanks, who put him in touch with Filipino player agent Bobby Rius who told me him he could play in the PBA as a local.

In 1996, he played with AMA Cybertigers, as a 21-year-old amateur player in the Philippine Basketball League (PBL).

As this was his first time playing in the country, his Filipino relatives helped him adjust to life in the Philippines.

Peek entered the PBA in 1998 after being drafted third overall by the now-defunct Pop Cola Panthers.

He was the Panthers' leading scorer, rebounder and shot-blocker.

During this time, he lived with his relatives in Cubao.

At the start of the 2001 PBA season, he was traded along with Jon Ordonio, to the rebuilding Alaska Aces for then-Alaska franchise player Johnny Abarrientos and Poch Junio.

During his time with the Aces, Peek's career blossomed despite the team falling short of winning a championship.

In his first two years with the Aces, Alaska's decision to go "younger" paid off.

Surrounded by talented youngsters John Arigo, Mike Cortez and Brandon Cablay during the 2003-04 season, Peek won Best Player of the Conference honors in the 2003 Invitational Cup including a championship against his former team which was, during that time, named the Coca-Cola Tigers.

The following conference, he underwent a knee operation that caused him to most of the conference.

In the off-season, he was also given a three-year contract extension worth P13.5 million.

In 2005, Peek was traded back along with Arigo to his former team, the Coca-Cola Tigers in exchange for former Alaska player Jeffrey Cariaso and big man Reynel Hugnatan.

During the 2005 Fiesta Conference, he scored a conference-high 27 points in an upset rout over the Talk 'N Text Phone Pals.

He finished the season as the second-best field goal shooter in the league.

The following season, Peek hit a clutch jumper that tied the game with 1:02 remaining in their Fiesta Conference match against the San Miguel Beermen.

His import teammate Alex Carcamo then had the game-winning tip-in basket.

They met again in the survivor playoffs, where SMB eliminated them in two games.

In the 2006 Philippine Cup, he scored 21 points in a win over the Air21 Express.

The next game, which was against his former team Alaska, he went 12-of-12 from the field for 27 points and the win.

This was the highest number of attempts without a miss in league history.

He also had five rebounds, two assists, one block and three free throws in 32 minutes of action.

In his sophomore season, he was the 12th leading scorer in the league, fourth in field goal percentage, fifth in rebounding, and seventh in blocks.