Currently seated on a precarious 2-2 tie with Petron Blaze in the ongoing PBA Governor's Cup Finals, I feel that there has always been a big elephant in the room that people have continued to ignore for years. That elephant being, why can't the Talk 'n' Text Tropang Texters win over fans other than MVP-PLDT employees and those who appreciate Jimmy Alapag's true value?
A quick trip to the team's Wikipedia page would show its so-so legacy since Pilipino TeleCom took over the Pepsi franchise in 1996. So far, it has won five titles: one in 1998, then in Alapag's rookie year in 2003, 2008 and this year's Philippine and Commissioner's Cups.
The page also shows the number of PBA legends that have adorned the TNT yellow and blue that could and should have won them a multitude of fans based on the players' starpower alone (from Jeffrey Cariaso, Asi Taulava to Willie Miller and Jimmy Alapag).
So now, without further ado, here are the reasons why I think, TNT remains to be the PBA's version of the WWE's Triple H (you know he's good, but since he has a lot of connections and douche-y moves that may or may not be his fault, you just can't root for him no matter what).
1) Asi Taulava, Jeffrey Cariaso and Andy Seigle
- This should have been the core that would have led the then Mobiline Phonepals to numerous PBA titles. Imagine having Cariaso, who was arguably the closest the 90s had to a Mark Caguioa, being paired with 6"8 and 6"10 giants. Wether it was bad coaching, or them just battling superb basketball players (not athletes though), they just couldn't pull through. Also, this team was the first to distance itself from local fans as other than Cariaso (who was disliked by Ginebra fans for his role in Alaska's 1996 grandslam), no one knew jack about Taulava and Seigle and were unimpressed with the young duo's post plays (both were several notches lower skills-wise than local bigs Benjie Parasm Marlou Aquino, Zaldy Realubit.) This team, in my mind, paved the way for Fil-foreigners and the division in fans that ultimately hurt the PBA-- those who embraced the athletic newcomers, and those who preferred to root for the homegrown talents.
2) Jerry Codinera
- you really can't blame TNT for this one. They saw an opportunity to get an established power forward to pair with budding Asi Taulava even if it was on Andy Seigle's expense. This was TNT's first move to try and win over some local "masa" fans but it backfired on them. The people didn't want to see Codinera wearing a different uniform from bossom buddy Alvin Patrimonio. It was painful to watch, and the fans unfairly blamed TNT for it. Purefoods' survived because of Patrimonio's charisma while Codinera started to fade into the limelight (he was later on traded to Fedex but that was at the twilight of his career).
3) Bill Bayno VS BCAP
- here was a legit, NCAA division 1 coach who came to the country to revolutionize Philippine basketball. Only problem was, local coaches weren't that open to the idea and Bayno's brash, American arrogance didn't help his case either. The last straw was when he told his players to score for the opponents (read: shoot at their own hoop) to better their own team's standings which will always be considered as "un-macho" in any book.
4) Willie Miller
- what's there to say about Miller other than he's aloof, and that he was traded by his first PBA team, Red Bull, to the very same squad they lost to in the finals THE NEXT CONFERENCE?
5) Mac Cardona
- Cardona, though I love his game and swagger, is a walking, modern-day kontrabida regardless of the team and its fans he's playing against.
6) Chot Reyes
- the epitome of the negative Atenean stereotype: Brash, arrogant and "holier than thou." The shirts are nice, and everyone has the right to be fashionable. But admit it or not, the loud shirts take away from the focus on the game. I'll tell you something else about Reyes, he is damn good and scouts opponents like no other. He preaches a run and gun system built around hustling defense as opposed to the old school PBA's shoot-shoot-shoot style of coaching. He's never one to try and win over fans, and even when he answers to the Media you can feel a sense of "you're asking me that?!" mockery in his tone. Great coach, just not PR-able.
Your thoughts?
Great article Sir! I agree with all the reasons to dislike Talk 'N Text stated here. You didn't even add the infamous walkout yet (Eric Menk started calling them Walk 'N Text on his twitter account after that). I do remember it was Ariel Vanguardia who instructed Jojo Manalo to take a shot at their own ring though - and he was even saying during postgame interviews that he was showing how screwed up the quotient system was. That's why he coaches in Malaysia nowadays.
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