Raymond Townsend weighed 175 pounds when he manned the backcourt for the Golden State Warriors and three weeks shy of his 70th birthday, he proudly maintains his playing weight.

“I’m a ‘manong’ now,” Townsend said Saturday afternoon, explaining “that’s an old Filipino” in Ilokano.

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“But I’m still my playing weight, and I can still shoot it.”

A San Jose native drafted 22nd overall by the Warriors in 1978, Townsend is the first Filipino American to play in the NBA. He reconnected with the franchise Saturday for its Filipino Heritage Night at Chase Center, where Golden State continued its homestand against the New Orleans Pelicans.

As part of the festivities – that included traditional dance performances in between the first and second quarters and at halftime – Townsend conducted a pregame question-and-answer with some of the hundreds of Filipino fans.

“To see the fans, how it’s grown – the most Filipino fans in the NBA are in the Bay Area,” Townsend said. “It’s just really exciting to see our people … take so much pride in their heritage and their culture.”

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Townsend is Filipino through his late mother, Virginia Marrella, and starred at Mitty and Camden highs before enrolling at UCLA. He played for legendary head coach John Wooden – and sharpened his skills while Warriors head coach Steve Kerr, whose father, Malcolm, was a UCLA professor, rebounded for him. Townsend won a national title in 1975 with the Bruins.

In two seasons for Golden State, Townsend, a 6-foot-3-inch guard, averaged 5.1 points and 13.8 minutes, also playing 1981-82 for the Indiana Pacers.

“I never thought about whether or not I’d be the first Filipino who would play in the NBA,” said Townsend, who also played several seasons professionally abroad. “My idols were Pete Maravich, Jerry West and JoJo White. … All my idols were great players. I didn’t think anything about their ethnicity.”

Townsend knew he was the first Filipino to play in the NBA but wasn’t outwardly recognized as such until “probably in the early 2000s,” he said. Jordan Clarkson (New York Knicks), Jalen Green (Phoenix Suns), Jared McCain (Philadelphia 76ers) and Dylan Harper (San Antonio Spurs) have since joined Townsend as NBA players with Filipino heritage.

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Filipino Heritage Nights have also become commonplace around the NBA and Townsend helped the Warriors plan their first Filipino Heritage Night 20-something odd years ago. He’s grateful to stay involved with the organization, still residing in San Jose and carrying his culture – and basketball – forward.

“I’m very proud of my … heritage and these young players who are of Filipino heritage and carrying the torch now,” Townsend said, having traveled to the Philippines a dozen times, first in the mid-1980s, he added. “You’re going to see a lot more young Filipinos make it. So, I’m proud of that.”

Games added: The Warriors were assigned two regular-season games because they didn’t qualify for the quarterfinals of the NBA Cup. They host the Minnesota Timberwolves on Dec. 12 and travel to play Dec. 14 against the Portland Trail Blazers.

This article originally published at Townsend, NBA’s first Filipino American player, revels in Warriors’ celebration.