First look at the new Air21 Express

We finally caught a glimpse of the new-look, suddenly veteran-laden, Air21 Express in their out-of-town game against the Talk N Text Tropang Texters earlier this evening. Starting for "Team Ube" were Wynne Arboleda, Jay-R Reyes, import (???) Robinson and new recruits Dondon Hontiveros and Dorian Pena-- a team that now teems with championship/ Philippine national squad pedigree following a "lopsided" deal with San Miguel just last Wednesday.

So how did Hontiveros, Pena, Danny Seigle and Paul Artadi fare in their Air21 debuts (a 124-110 loss wherein the ex-SMB foursome scored almost half of their team's points)?

Hontiveros came out hot, scoring in ways never before seen since he last cared for the title of "Best 2-guard in the game" that he ceded to James Yap in a previous Finals showdown. It was nice to see the "Cebuano Hotshot" in his element-- a cold-blooded gunslinger who does his best when allowed to freelance on offense. And since Air21 head coach Bong Ramos is far from your Tim Cones and Jong Uichicos (coaches who prefer a structured offense), Hontiveros called his own number on numerous occasions.

Pena also played a yeoman's role, being the best rebounding big man to have ever worn an Air21 jersey in only his first game! Granted, TNT opted to field Kelly Williams at the center position and used bullish Ali Peek only in spurts, but Pena was simply throwing his weight around LITERALLY.

Seigle has also clearly benefited from the trade, playing more minutes than usual and even scoring in his old, "I'm bigger than the guy who's guarding me" way. The trade must've energized him a bit though, since he blocked one of Kelly Williams' patented, strong arm fall-aways on one sequence (when was the last time you saw Seigle-- Danny not Andy, block a shot?).

But one of the letdowns I feel was Artadi's minutes on the floor. He showed that he could contribute and energize the crowd during the times that he was used, but was relegated to Arboleda and Josh Urbiztondo's back-up (re: third string point guard). Hopefully, coach Bong realizes that Urbiztondo is more streak shooter than point guard, and that Artadi is just the man he needs to change tempos from Arboleda's half court attacks to a faster paced, "let's get it" approach spearheaded by Kid Lightning.

Perhaps coach Bong can be more creative with his line-ups and field Reed Juntilla to be either Hontiveros' or Seigle's sidekick on the floor. That way, the proven veterans can play decoy while Juntilla can do what he seems to do best-- score silently and efficiently (like a mellowed-down version of B-Meg's PJ Simon). An inside-out game with Jay-R Reyes could also help get Kerby 2.0 back on track.

Oh, and they need to replace import Robinson QUICK if they seriously want to contend.

On a lighter note, wouldn't it be funny if MVP trades for one of the four ex-SMBers now that they're with trade-happy Air21?