Baculi's bull-ish approach dooms Energy

Grind it out or run and gun? Baculi's Energy needs an identity

Usually I'm on the side of coaches whenever their teams take a hit. It's one thing to draw up plays and throw out 30-second motivational speeches, it's another to have five guys execute what you just said or illustrated on a grimy whiteboard.

But after watching the Barako Bulls Energy's up and down campaign in the Philippine Cup where they are at risk of placing 7th going into the Quarterfinals, there's no other person to blame but head coach Junel Baculi.

Granted the Energy are made up more of veterans than hungry youngsters, but if Baculi really wanted to win games instead of padding his veteran stars' stats and egos maybe he should've taken a younger approach to things.

Looking at the roster, it could've gone either way: grind it out, old school basketball powered by Wyne Arboleda, Willie Miller, Danny Seigle, Dorian Pena and Mick Penissi or a run and gun system behind Paul Artadi, then Energy player rookie Allein Maliksi, Sunday Salvacion, Dylan Ababou and Leo Najorda.

Instead, fans were treated to a rag tag team that had near bizarre rotations with Ababou and Seigle playing together, almost canceling each other out by being the exact same players (if it didn't work at Petron with Jay Washington and Arwind Santos, it won't work anywhere), Miller passing when he should be scoring, Don Allado playing when Dorian Pena (or the now MIA Jondan Salvador) was needed to provide some muscle in the shaded area and so on.

The Maliksi trade for Aquino also hurt the Energy-- one, by reestablishing what we all know-- that the Lina franchise is only in the PBA to make extra money on trades, and two, subconsciously hurting the guys left on the rosters' egos/ feelings as them being possible future trade baits.

Of course, there are games when everything goes for the Energy and their vets play like role players on the end of a contract. Then, there are times (as expected from older teams) when they look lethargic but are still forced to produce by Baculi and his staff.

Hopefully, we see more of young guys Ababou and underrated forward Leo Najorda in the Quarters (and next conference). Do I still consider this team as a darkhorse in the Philippine Cup? Not really, I'm going with Powerade at this point, but I wouldn't count out the Energy to at least challenge whoever they're facing in the next round (if it's the injury-saddled Talk n Text Tropang Texters, then you can bet on the Energy to pull off an upset based on their veterans' pride alone-- playing against 2nd stringers and all).