Mega-trade sends Tenorio to Ginebra, Casio to Alaska

From PBA-Online.net

Finally bringing an end to all the rumors that ran amok over on Twitterverse thanks to Snow Badua, five PBA teams took to the spotlight with one of the biggest trades in recent memory.

While point guards L.A. Tenorio formerly of Alaska and JVee Casio formerly of GlobalPort caught everyone’s attention because of their superstar status and National Team pedigree, this writer argues the teams that acquired them may not necessarily be the biggest winners of the deal (on-court basketball wise).

Alaska Aces: JVee Casio (Global Port), Dondon Hontiveros (Petron) and 2nd Round Pick (Ginebra)
At first we were all going nuts and throwing fits over Alaska’s decision to send arguably the hottest basketball commodity today in Tenorio over to a team that’s not exactly fond of loaning players to the National cause. It was as unfathomable as the Aces sending one time PBA MVP Kenneth Duremdes over to Santa Lucia back in 2001 for a guy who would later turn out to be that year’s 5th overall pick Brandon Cablay (who is good, but nowhere near the same stratosphere as Duremdes). But then they got JVee Casio from Global Port. Followed by Dondon Hontiveros from Petron. Two national players of different eras but are definitely serviceable starters.

For flag and country

Not a fan of Coach Chot's
but you have to feel for our
PILIPINAS head coach

SMART Gilas Pilipinas head coach Chot Reyes has until tomorrow to submit the names of the players he's bringing along to the FIBA tournament to be held in Japan this coming September 14. Problem is, he might have to drop some key players from his newly-crowned 34th William Jones Cup title team because of some blatant unpatriotic moves by certain parties.

Rumors have it that Jones Cup Most Valuable Player L.A. Tenorio is on his way to a San Miguel Corporation team straight from Alaska. It doesn't matter that he served as the team's poster boy the last few years, emerged as the league's best PG and even led Pilipinas to Asian basketball gold. This is the thanks he gets for serving the country. His legacy tarnished by yet another trade. Fuuuuuuu.

SMART Gilas: The KKS Reinforcements

So the 34th William Jones Cup championship is in the bag and we've found ourselves back to a position of basketball respectability this side of the world. Should we rest on our laurels and send the same successful unit to the FIBA-Asia tournament this September 14? They are after all, the gold medal -winning bunch that did it via heart and desire.

Yes and no.

This writer argues that we should keep the core players: L.A. Tenorio, Jeffrei Chan, Gabe Norwood, Ranidel de Ocampo, Marcus Douthit, Sol Mercado and Larry Fonacier (yes, Pareng Larry makes the cut as the smartest PBA player today). After those guys, we should consider looking for an upgrade. Not that they're not any good (Gary David is still The Man), but we need a deeper rotation that can be relied upon (Pilipinas has been suffering from long, mid-game lulls which we cannot afford to have against better competition). So here's a short list of the guys who should be considered for the coming FIBA tournament (if they're healthy and in game shape of course).

34th Jones Cup: Pusong Palaban

Ginto!

In a game that it had absolutely no business of winning after a tough 0-6 start and falling behind by double digits most of the way, the under-sized, little prepared and odd bunch known to us as the Pilipinas select team snatched the 34th William Jones Cup gold medal win right under the cocky U.S.A. stalwarts 76-75.

Not only were the Americans taking advantage of their superior combination of height, speed and athleticism that we only have Gabe Norwood to match with, but the guys added another facet to their attack-- knocking down jumpers and long bombs and just pretty much rising up over our shorter countrymen. In layman's terms, "ginawang asintahan ung mga puyo natin."

34th Jones Cup: Top 10 Things We've Learned

Pilipinas' battlecry: ATTACK!

1. The dribble-drive offense is just as effective a zone-breaker as shooting from the outside
This approach opened a lot of eyes in terms of breaking the dreaded zone defense that we Filipino, having learned and patterned the game from the Americans, believe to be indestructible. Of course, for the DD to be effective, a team has to have A) a slasher strong enough to protect the ball and receive contact and B) shooters to kick-out too. We've always had A covered, it was the B part that we never really consistently had until this year. Even Gilas I didn't enjoy such premium-quality shooters led by Jeffrei Chan (who is really Allan Caidic on a Chin Chun Su overdose). The most effective so far are starting guard L.A. Tenorio who does it by his craftiness and exceptional ball-handling plus back-up Sol Mercado who just bulldozes his way inside. They suck in the 2-3 zone and force opponents to regroup/ help, leaving our shooters roaming free and waiting for the ball.

Date kasi ang intindi natin, pagnaka zona ang kalaban, tirahan mo na lang ng tres. Wag ka na mag-effort. Papawisan ka lang. Buti sana kung lahat ng player natin e mala-Caidic na sure-ball. Ngayon, gumagalaw lahat.

34th Jones Cup: Gilas survives Taiwanese shootout

It's Showtime!

UNBERIBABURRRRYAAAAH! (read: Unbelievable!)

Pilipinas, known for its one-on-one forays and dribbling exploits, survived yet another shootout this time against Chinese Taipei which all but guarantees our team a medal-finish in the 34th William Jones Cup. Tonight, the team did it in a "my turn, your turn" fashion by hacking out a 76-72 win over Chinese Taipei who were playing in front of their home crowd.

Quite funny how the Taiwanese came in full force to cheer the home team and heckle ours--most likely unaware that this select team has heard worse from Ginebra fans (them being all non-SMC guys). That being said, it was a great game with back and forth action. Jeffrei Chan carried us early, drilling in threes that would make Allan Caidic proud.

Ginebra picks Chris... Ellis (over Tiu)

Solid pick-up... for the future

Potential versus prime, promise versus reality, necessity versus want.

When Barangay Ginebra San Miguel head coach Siot Tangquincen was asked weeks back who he'd like to pick 6th in the PBA Draft 2012, the fiery Thomasian uttered the name "Chris Tiu" all without batting an eyelash. There was no hesitation in his answer, and it pretty much played into the Ginebra faithful's liking.

Here was a guy who spent the last couple of years wearing PILIPINAS on his chest as a starter, knocking down shots and holding the fort as a back-up point guard. THAT, plus his other praise-worthy endeavors such as TV host, model, brand(SSssss) ambassador and being an all-around good guy.

34th Jones Cup: Gilas takes down Asian champs

KKS calls a ceasefire
on all "Norwood is soft" jokes
...for now :)

For only the nth time since the Iranians zoomed into the upper echelon of Asian basketball, Pilipinas was able to raise its hands in victory at game's end. It was ugly early; sluggish and brutal-- both teams recognizing what was at stake and not wanting to give any advantage thus milking the shot clock and causing some of the most amateur-ish (and botched) sets before turning the intensity up in the second half.

Like a box office title fight, both teams didn't play their cards outright. Iran was happy with feeding the ball down low and not really looking to work around the center with their guards who are truly Euro-league worthy (Nikkhah Barrami is a beast!) while Pilipinas' dreaded "dribble drive" offense was being held at bay for halfcourt sets. Though the first half ended locked at 33 a piece, the game was physical, competitive and highly entertaining. The referees were doing their part to mess up the game for both teams, calling the quickest three second violations you'll ever see on television and missing some chippy plays inside.

The Dream Match: Gilas I vs II

PG: Jimmy Alapag/ JVee Casio/ Mark Barroca vs L.A. Tenorio/ Sol Mercado/ Gabe Norwood


Advantage goes to Gilas I owing to Alapag and Casio’s marksmanship. They are able to spread the floor more than the current PG rotation who are mostly dribble-drivers by trade (except Tenorio). Of the lot, you’d say that I will have a hard time stopping II’s bigger and stronger guards, but this is a team game and PGs aren’t needed to drive inside in the FIBA games, they’re meant to shoot from deep and play safety on defense. You can argue for Gilas II by saying that Mercado and Norwood are best suited to play alongside Chan and David, but three points per trip is still three points per trip.

Adv. Gilas I

34th Jones Cup: Pilipinas' grades

Stay aggressive Gabe!

Today's 88-84 win over Japan marks yet another come-from-behind win for Team Pilipinas, pulling out all the stops to erase a 4th quarter 11-point deficit. Not only where the Japs shooting the ball with Korean-like precision, but their ball movement was the best this writer has seen from that country in years.

Fortunately for us, Marcus "Big Daddy" Douthit came through with a stellar 26 points, 13 rebounds performance to carry us throughout the game in time for the locals to regroup defensively and wax hot in the 4th. Our top gunners, Gary David and Jeffrei Chan, provided the needed long bombs with Gabe Norwood-- who is having a "Cyrus Baguio-like" series, just playing the best basketball we've seen from him so far.

We have to commend Coach Chot Reyes for his awesome shuffling and also that impressive switching on defense which just about everyone on the floor for Pilipinas appears to have embraced whole-heartedly. Not only were they being active, but screens and picks by the Japs were being taken out of the equation because there was always a guy rotating inside or outside to meet them.

So without further ado, let's move on to the grades so far:

34th Jones Cup: Gilas now 3-0

Hello Asia, his name is Gary David.
He plays shitty defense, but on offense?
Well, ask Korea. :) 

Regardless if South Korea opted to send a club team (think of it as the Philippines sending Petron or Talk 'n' Text plus two reinforcements) to the 34th William Jones Cup, let us all enjoy and savor this sweet and hard-earned 82-79 victory over our FIBA tormentors.

Though we coasted to a quick 14 point lead in the first quarter, the Koreans fought back behind their two imports Juan Patillo (think of him as a more athletic, stronger and young version of Jordan's Rasheim Wright) and 7"0 giant Gary Stutz. Their locals, physically taller and stronger than the Pilipinas select team, were also playing like they usually do-- calm, knocking down shots and moving the ball around instead of dribbling the shotclock off (which we kept on doing).

The Air21 Rebuilding Project

Forget Baclao. If Air21 lands Wilson,
they'll get Gary David 2.0-- with more defense.

Following last season's embarrassing performance, which is expected of such a young team, the Air21 Express set their sights on rebuilding the roster in order to make a dent in the PBA. Laughable as that may seem, since Management's best interest has always been on making profit off trades, let's give the Franz Pumaren-coached squad the benefit of the doubt.

Now this is all according to newsreports (and some rumors) since the trade hasn't received the nod of PBA Commissioner Chito Salud so everything is still up in the air. What we do know at the moment is that the team isn't high on Elmer Espiritu, Paolo Hubalde, Magi Sison, Eric Salamat and nuisance Ogie Menor. Chances are, these guys will be sent elsewhere or have their contracts left to expire.

PBA Draft 2012: Top 10

Mahangin ba sa labas?

10. Those college ties run deep
Alaska getting Calvin Abueva (they have his college coach Topex Robinson on staff). Simon Atkins to Air 21 (Franz Pumaren). Jason Escueta to Talk 'n' Text (Norman Black).

9. Height is might  
Don't know if this will stick, but the first and second rounds' average height must be around the 6"3-6"4 area. A lot of wings and bigs there.

8. Petron has the best and worst hairstyles in the league
Yes to Alex Cabagnot's I don't know. Pony tail? No to Alex Mallari's bed hair.

PBA Draft 2012: The Others

Okay, so we've written about the First Round picks and how they could help their respective teams earlier. Now it's time to take a quick look at the second to sixth round picks and playfully predict where they might be at year's end.

Second round

1. Air 21 - Yousef Taha (will battle Bitoy Omolon for minutes... and find that he's still soft around the corners)
2. Barako Bull - Dave Marcelo (most likely to be traded to an MVP team)
3. BMeg - Jewel Ponferrada (kiss Jerwin Gaco's minutes goodbye)
4. GlobalPort - AJ Mandani (is going to shock the world and steal JVee Casio's minutes)
5. Barako Bull - Lester Alvarez
6. Barako Bull - Emman Monfort (traded to Talk 'n' Text or sent to the ABL)
7. Meralco - Kelly Nabong (will have friendly encounters with Marc Pingris, Beau Belga, Ogie Menor, et. al. all his sixth game in the PBA)
8. Barako Bull - Woody Co (will wish that he didn't lose all that weight but would also do a Ken Bono-- good offense + so-so defense = bench/ ABL)
9. Alaska - Raphy Reyes (will make Cyrus Baguio look soft)
10. Talk 'n Text - Jaypee Belencion (gunner! Needs to bulk up and play defense)

Rain or Shine gets Tiu

Mukha lang choir boy pero mabagsik
din sa gulangan si Chris Tiu

After last year's masterful selection of eventual Rookie of the Year Paul Lee, the Rain or Shine Elastopainters found yet another gem in SMART Gilas alumnus/ TV host/ model/ entrepreneur/ heart throb Chris Tiu.

Not only will Tiu's addition boost the team with a capable rotation player, but he alone would uplift the Elastopainters' fanbase and improve their overall PR slant. As a player, Tiu will have time to develop and shine since Lee will be sidelined at the start of the Philippine Cup due to his shoulder injury/ surgery. A natural shooting guard, look for Tiu to play the point and steal minutes from his Xavier teammate TY Tang.

PBA Draft 2012 1st Round Grades

Can't teach height.

What a day for the future of Philippine basketball! Arguably one of the most potent and star-ready lot in the last decade, the PBA Draft 2012 went all six rounds-- with the rechristened Barangay Ginebra San Miguel out to try point guards by the dozen.

First round

1. Petron Blaze - June Mar Fajardo
This was a no brainer, though Fajardo is a three-year project at best, the guy stands 6"10 and has actual muscles that Bonel Balingit, E.J. Feihl, Marlou Aquino and Andy Seigle COMBINED could only dream of. Don't look for Fajardo to dominate the game ASAP, since there's a solid reason why he was glued to the bench in the ASEAN Basketball League. In the PBA, he's job has been defined for him before he was even called out to the stage: intimidate, rebound and block shots. If Coach Olsen Racela and 2x PBA MVP Danny Ildefonso could work their magic on Fajardo and speed up Fajardo's basketball IQ, then look for Petron to be a playoffs fixture for years to come.

Grade: A (Fajardo addresses the one position that Petron doesn't have a bunch of guys to choose from)

34th Jones Cup: Pilipinas wins, still sloppy

Pilipinas goes only
as far as Douthit takes them

The new-look men's national basketball team are off on the right track with a hard-earned 88-80 victory over a sluggish Jordan squad led by a clearly out of gym shape Rasheim Wright. While we were able to hack out the W and even post a double digit lead in the first quarter, the lapses (mostly in the second quarter) need to be taken addressed ASAP.

Coach Chot Reyes stuck to what has become his teams' identity over the years: run to the rim basketball. Drive and kick. Nothing fancy, just a plain "get the ball to the rim as close as you can" mentality that rubbed off even on the putty-soft Gabe Norwood.

Bright spots for the team are naturalized center Marcus Douthit who finished with 17 points and 14 rebounds after spending most of the 1st quarter on the bench due to foul trouble. Then came the shooters Jeffrei Chan, Gary David and Larry Fonacier who found themselves open one too many times on the floor. Call it a lack of scouting on the Jordanians' part, but they went with a traditional zone defense obviously banking on the Philippines' old reputation of being an "all drive, no J" team.

Petron dumps Ato, hires Rah-Rah

Coach O

In a move seen as soon as mid-way of the PBA Governor's Cup, the Petron Blaze Boosters unceremoniously gave the boot to sophomore head coach Ato Agustin and brought in another prized alum in Olsen Racela.

While Agustin was able to steer a then-depleted Boosters squad to a Governor's Cup crown in his first season, he failed to make the necessary adjustments required once the superstars came back. The tough task of having to spread minutes to a loaded line-up that features two elite PBA first five-worthy guys was just too much for Agustin, whose bread and butter as a coach has always been in squeezing out the best of his players who already have marked roles on the offense.

Welcome to the PBA Global Port Batang Pier

The dream has finally turned into reality.

Champion sports aficionado and shipping mogul Mikee Romero has finally turned his boyhood dream into reality: earning the PBA Board of Governors' nod in acquiring the Powerade Tigers franchise thus joining Asia's pioneering basketball league of over thirty-five years.

What this means:

1. No more drama
Last season's magical, Cinderella story run to the Finals and superstar Gary David's "takeover" of the league was marred by rumors of the Tigers' demise. There were reports that the team was for sale and worse, on the verge of being disbanded with all of its players, coaches and staff left under the cold and lonely rain. Well, Romero's multi-million Peso acquisition assures us all of continuity in terms of the players-- since the core guys; David, JVee Casio, Rabah Al Hussaini and Sean Anthony are signed to long-term contracts while the reserves led by Rey Guevarra, Rommel Adducul, Rudy Lingganay and Jondan Salvador.

SMART Gilas 1: Revisited

What if?

Now that the season is over and we know where each of the concerned pieces stand, this writer can not help but picture what might have been had all the original, dreamt players taken part of the highly successful SMART Gilas program. Though there were about five or six players who chose to skip the national program and move on to the pros, let's single out three who could've improved our chances: Rabah Al Hussaini, Noy Baclao and Paul Lee.

Al Hussaini, at a beefy 6"5, would've been a joy to watch offensively for Gilas. A traditional post big who can knock down mid range jumpers, the former King Eagle would've commanded respect and helped open up the floor for naturalized center Marcus Douthit. Anyone who's ever played the game would tell you that having a big who can anchor the offense down low is always a plus, because it makes things easier for everyone. Guys can roam freely and choose their spots on the floor and makes the defenders extend outside if used correctly.

PBA GovCup Finals: RoS' locker room celebration

Newly-crowned Governor's Cup champions' Rain or Shine Elastopainters' wet and wild locker room celebration.

What else did you expect?

PBA GovCup Finals: A Review

Nawala ung laro ni Sakuragi

Now that the dust has settled a bit and some of the euphoria has faded into the rainy evening, let's look back at some of the things we learned from the highly competitive PBA GovCup Finals that opened a lot of eyes.

First, there's the fact that the champions-- the Rain or Shine Elastopainters, managed to win big the old fashioned way: "Built not bought." The title was six years in the making, took some retooling and a more aggressive stance (thanks to Coach Yeng Guiao who took over for the meek Caloy Garcia) but it was arguably a breath of fresh air in a league dominated by powerhouse teams with endless financial exploits.

So without further adieu...

PBA GovCup Finals: Na-delay lang pero amin ito

Finals MVP: Jeff Chan 

Sa sobrang pagkaka-delay ng kampeonato para sa Rain or Shine Elastopainters, muntikan ng masilat ni 2x PBA MVP James Yap at ng BMeg Llamados. Buti na lang bumalik sila sa dati nilang porma at hindi nagpadaig sa libo-libong Llamados fans (kasama na referees) na dumagsa sa SMART Araneta Coliseum.

Matapos ng ilang taong pagkaka bwusit sa potensyal na taglay ni Gabe Norwood, sa wakas natauhan din siya at namalayang 6"5 ang height nya kumpara sa bumabantay sa kanyang si Josh Urbiztondo. May mga ilang beses na nalulusutan sya ni Urbiztondo at tinitirahan, pero agad namang bumabawi si Norwood sa opensa-- oo, sa opensa, para panatilihing angat ang Elastopainters.

PBA Draft 2012: The Chris Tiu Factor

Tiu: Petron, Alaska or Meralco?

We already know where 6"9 big man June Mar Fajardo is going. The KKS Vince McMahon has already gone public with the Petron Blaze Boosters' choice for the number one overall pick of the promising PBA Draft 2012. It's not rocket science, they brought him in from Cebu, nurtured him and gave him international experience battling mostly American giants in the ASEAN Basketball League so  let the Boosters have their man.

What's becoming even more of a conundrum is who gets picked next. The Alaska Aces appear to be opening up to the idea of bringing in "The Beast" Calvin Abueva of the NCAA's San Sebastian Golden Stags. Arguably the best, most decorated and widely respected player among the applicants given his monstrous efforts on the basketball court.

PBA GovCup Finals: Do-or-die Sunday

To win game 7: Yap needs to dominate.
Norwood needs to play smarter.

For one night, let's forget that the upstart Rain or Shine Elastopainters over-achieved this conference and jumped to a 3-1 Finals lead.

For one night, let's all forget that James Yap, 2x PBA Most Valuable Player, has been playing like a king not to be denied of his throne the last two-three outings.

For one night, let's just enjoy the last game of such an entertaining 37th PBA season that has provided us with joy, heartbreak, frustration and even hope wether you are a Barangay Ginebra fan or a masochistic Air21 hopeful.

Tiu-day's the day

The PBA needs Chris Tiu

Apologies for the elementary-level title. Had second, third, fourth and even eight thoughts before letting it be. There's really no other way to say it so... If Chris Tiu, former captain of the SMART Gilas men's national baskteball team, Ateneo Blue Eagle, magazine coverboy, posterboy, TV host, barangay kagawad and entrepreneur, wants in to the PBA, then there's no other time in but now.

Most of his Gilas teammates have moved on to the pros and enjoyed much success (JVee Casio, Marcio Lassiter and Chris Lutz) and even carried their respective fanbases with them. Tiu, ever the patriot, opted to stick it out with the Gilas team believing he'll still be an integral part of it (read: play heavy minutes) regardless of coach, teammates and other unseen factors.

Problem was, once Coach Chot Reyes took over for the sacked Rajko Toroman, Tiu faced even stiffer competition by virtue of the PBA veterans that were all set to join in.

PBA GovCup Finals: The James Yap Rises; Series now 2-3

Hindi pa ako tapos!

The PBA's most celebrated two-time Most Valuable Player just wasn't ready to go on vacation.

Not with the reigning NBA champion Miami Heat's coach Erik Spoelstra watching intently in the stands. With a beauty like Venus Raj and other celebrities hooked into what has become an overly physical series that has surprisingly been nothing short of entertaining for basketball fans and non-fans alike.

The games are heated, BMeg Llamados and Rain or Shine Elastoplayers aren't smiling at one another like they do in the NBA where everyone's a friend. There's a growing sense of hatred once the ball is tossed until the buzzer sounds. There's intensity, tenacity and fire from both camps. And tonight, it was Yap who shone brightest and torched the hapless Elastopainters.