No Fight in Aces

L.A. Tenorio needs better teammates

The Alaska Aces, currently in the midst of an ugly ass-whooping from former coach Tim Cone's BMeg Llamados, need change.

Coach Luigi Trillo is trying his darndest to teach the Xs and Os to the players, but they are just not responding. Several times, the guys on the court settle to certain positions and do not even bother to move without the basketball. Hell, only their import Jason Forte and star point guard L.A. Tenorio seem to be even remotely interested in handling the rock.



We've said it before and we'll say it again, franchise player Sonny Thoss is a solid player-- but he's not exactly someone you can rely on to drop 20 and 10s ala the Asis, Menks and Ildefonsos of yesteryears. The trade that sent JayR Reyes to Meralco for Gabby Espinas did more harm than good, despite rumors of the former being a handful for the team. Without Reyes, the Aces are left with one too many iso-heavy players in Cyrus Baguio, Bonbon Custodio and even new recruit RJ Jazul.

Espinas, though slowly starting to round back into NCAA Rookie of the Year-Most Valuable Player form (during the last few games he had with Meralco), is pretty much in the same versatile wing category as Tony de la Cruz and Mac Baracael.

Perhaps what Coach Luigi could consider, if he can't trade Baguio and or Custodio for hungrier players who don't shy away from the basketball, is to pair Tenorio with TDLC and Baracael early instead of bringing them off the bench. Baguio could be exploited as a firestarter off the bench, relieving him of the superstar pressure, and whatever Custodio (posterboy for inconsistency) brings, will be a bonus.

That way, Thoss won't be asked to cover up for his guards' defensive lapses and avoid being in foul trouble early. Also, Baracael's rookie hunger and desire should be exploited to the hilt. Forget that he's not exactly PBA starter material unlike his fellow SMART Gilas peers, you could see that the kid wants to win and isn't afraid of taking the big shots.

Sadly, the same cannot be said for the fast-falling Baguio and Custodio (who should just sit down for Eric Salamat).