The PBA's 26th to 40th Greatest Players

The Face of the modern day PBA
(Photo courtesy of Sports5)

The Philippine Basketball Association, in celebration of its 40th season, has opted to name 40 of its "Greatest Players." Now, since the league has already named its initial 25 (for its 25th season in early 2000), the not so simple task has been eased somewhat with the PBA's special selection committee set to name "only" 15 other names.

On this report from the Philippine Star, they have listed the names of #TheNext15. Personally, we'd have loved for the Star to have made the announcement on a separate, wordy article instead of just a filler but hey, we have love for our friends over at the Star (they probably didn't have enough space and just tied two articles together).

Here's our instant reaction on the names chosen for #TheNext15 and who we felt were snubbed altogether:

James Carlos Yap, SG, Purefoods, 2x PBA MVP '05, '09
Though we will always put an asterisk on one (or both) of Yap's trophies because of what we'd like to call the "Kris Factor," there's no denying that he was indeed the face of the PBA during its post-Jaworski years. Yap came into the league as a legit, PBA matinee idol who could play the sport at a very high level yet maintained a clean cut image both on and off the court. He was basically the most likable guy out there while the league was going through all the unneeded shenanigans (random drug testing, Fil-shams, PBA commissioner shuffles, etc.) The thing that makes Yap a no brainer here is that, he embraced the idea of being the face of the league. He didn't ask for it, but he carried it with pride. Sometimes we get frustrated with him because of how badly he is being outplayed by his rivals, but then he pulls through in the clutch just to remind every one of how good he really is and then the world is back in order.

Willie Miller, SG, Red Bull/ Talk'n'Text/ Alaska/ Ginebra/ GlobalPort/Barako, 2x PBA MVP '02, '06 
If Yap were the face, which body part are we to make of Miller? Among all of the players in the last decade or so, Miller is arguably the very best and most fundamentally sound. He's quick and agile, yet he is also brute strong and aggressive. He can play outside with the best guards in the league, he can go inside to post-up for the easy macho finish or just spin for his pocket fadeaways. What was lacking from Miller was the aggressive mindset that a Mark Caguioa would always have coming into games. Miller is a fun-loving Filipino through and through, and had he stayed with one team or had a different approach, he'd probably go down as one of the best ever- if not THE very best. But hey, that wouldn't make him our lovable Willie now would it?

Asi Taulava, C, Talk'n'Text/ Meralco/ Air21, PBA MVP  '03
Taulava is a force of nature never before seen in the PBA. He's big yet agile, unlike a guy of the same size in Bonel Balingit. The basic post-up basketball may not always be there, but he's made use of what he has and made a living off it both in the PBA and even ASEAN Basketball League (where he is a legitimate season MVP).  You could say that Taulava won less because of all the controversies and of simply wanting to "fit in" instead of having that "Shaq kill 'em" mentality that would've alienated so many who already hate him early in his career (Fil-sham drama that, if you take a closer look in history, was never really closed on his book), but Taulava deserves his spot on this list over other centers of recent memory.

Danny Ildefonso, C, San Miguel Beer/ Meralco, PBA MVP '00-'01
One of the best to ever do it. Ildefonso went from skinny, lanky center to muscle-bound, Pinoy Karl Malone in just a season to carve what would be one of the greatest PBA stories ever (which is still being written, with new and exciting chapters at that). At a time wherein Fil-Ams (and -Shams) started taking over the league and locals were being relegated to the bench, Ildefonso more than showed that homegrown guys can compete at that same level if they just put in the work and effort. Ildefonso remains a  true class act to this very day.

Eric Menk, C, Tanduay/ Ginebra/ GlobalPort/ Alaska, PBA MVP  '04
Take Ildefonso's strengths and make him more of a go-to-guy in the clutch and you'll have Major Pain. We still remember him for the valiant effort in one of the FIBA tournaments in the mid-2000s wherein he was out-rebounding the famed "Great Wall of China" by his lonesome while his frontline buddy Taulava could only watch somewhat dumbfounded. Menk is a true blue collar worker who could've had a long, great career with one franchise (Tanduay) much like Ildefonso, but was saddled with some off court issues and injuries. He found his "rebirth" with Ginebra wherein he was truly appreciated for his greatness, and is now finding a little of the same with Alaska as one of its veteran anchors.

Kelly Williams, SF, Santa Lucia/ Talk'n'Text, PBA MVP '07
We feel that if not for the PBA MVP award (which he rightfully deserved that year for transforming the then hapless Santa Lucia Realtors), this is a list that's too early for Williams to be a part of. Williams, despite the flashy dunks and aerial acrobatics when finishing, has a lot of holes in his game and suffers from having a certain disconnect with local fans. Blame it on his lineage, or for him playing for a vanilla, powerhouse team like the Texters, but for some reason, Williams isn't seen as one of the best in his position nowadays. Maybe because of the blood disorder/ health issues? If anything, Williams is a hard worker on the court and is a good, religious person through and through as captured in his book, Rising Higher.

Jayjay Helterbrand, PG, Ginebra, PBA MVP '08
Mr. Fast, 1/2 of the Bandana Brothers, Mr. Helterbrand finds himself in this list after (though unfortunately) literally running old Ginebra favorite Bal David off the face of the PBA. In his many years with the team, Helterbrand has been a quiet anchor for the franchise while his buddy Caguioa basked in the limelight much like a modern day Arnaiz-Jaworski pairing. Though we'd always argue that Helterbrand is more combo than point guard, his combination of size and skillset is probably at one of the very best in the PBA ever-- specially for his position.

Jimmy Alapag, PG, Talk'n'Text, PBA MVP '10
#PUSO

Mark Caguioa, SG, Ginebra, PBA MVP '11 
Caguioa took the mantle of elite PBA superstar scorer from Kenneth Duremdes, and basically ran the  hell away with it with no one able to catch-up until maybe a Terrence Romeo grows some more facial hair and finds a coach that will trust him the full 48 minutes. While Yap is the face of the league, Caguioa is the fire that keeps it going in the hearts of many Filipinos today. His tenacity, his competitive edge-- this is what has made Caguioa so well respected by basketball fans-- Ginebra die-hards or not. There is not a single soul out there who would dare say that Caguioa half-assed a single game and with good reason-- because he never did, probably never will.

Arwind Santos, SF, San Miguel, PBA MVP '12
Santos is a stat-stuffing freak. He is not a go-to-guy who breaks down opponents with crossovers or highlight worthy, fancy fadeaways. He is a hard worker who is also a demon defensively. Had he been bigger and smarter on offense, he'd be the then less-hyped (hindi na ngayon, may Bagyo na e) LeBron James of the PBA (first run with the Cavaliers) with an even more suspect clutch gene. Okay, calm down now. LeBron James is pushing it. Maybe an Andrei Kirilenko. Yes? Yes.

Jayson Castro, SG, Talk'n'Text,
What? Him? Semi-clutch Castro? Well, guess he has to be in the list considering he was the FIBA Asia's best point guard of 2012. He's strong, athletic and cat-quick. But with each passing day, rookie Stanley Pringle is showing to be a much better Castro. And really, how many times has Castro taken a back seat to his kuya Jimmy?

Marc Pingris, PF, Purefoods/ San Miguel
We love Pingris. Who doesn't? But over Danny Seigle? Nelson Asaytono? Jun Limpot? What has Pingris done puts him over a Terry Saldana? Defense? No. Rebounding? No. Playing with passion? Maybe you're too young to have seen Saldana play at his best. Are we rewarding Pingris for his Gilas run? So why not Ranidel de Ocampo? Hell, if we're going with the hustle card, why not that dude Gabe Norwood who locked down a whole bunch of elite scorers and didn't get any thanks for it?

Kerby Raymundo, PF, Red Bull, Purefoods, Ginebra, Meralco
Give him Yap's 2006 MVP please. Thank you. Highly-skilled, high post player who tirelessly battled day and night against musclemen Menk, Ildefonso, Taulava, Davonn Harp, etc.

Marlou Aquino, C, Ginebra/ Santa Lucia/ Meralco, PBA ROY '96
We'd put the guy who inspired the name of this blog on the list for that 2-3 year stretch with Ginebra, his 1st year with Santa Lucia, and his amateur years of being the most dominant tall guy around. We'd take him off the list because he's the very reason why a guy like Marc Pingris, who (back then) had little to no basketball IQ but played with all heart, got on this very list.

Chito Loyzaga, C, YCO-Tanduay/ Toyota/ Great Taste/ Ginebra
Loyzaga's inclusion as a defensive specialist and class act, is why we feel we don't need to put Pingris on the list just yet. If we're going with elite defender, then Loyzaga is it over Pingris for now. All the things Pingris did for Gilas, Loyzaga did for the national team just as well (if not better) back in the 90s because he didn't have a near 7"0 import by his side. He held his own like a bad, bad man.

The 1st to 25th (in no particular order) or initial batch of "PBA Greatest Players" include Robert Jaworski, Sr., Ramon Fernandez, Alvin Patrimonio, Bogs Adornado, Abet Guidaben, Benjie Paras, Atoy Co, Freddie Hubalde, Philip Cezar, Ricky Brown, Johnny Abarrientos, Ato Agustin, Francis Arnaiz, Allan Caidic, Hector Calma, Jerry Codinera, Kenneth Duremdes, Bernie Fabiosa, Danny Florencio, Jojo Lastimosa, Lim Eng Beng, Samboy Lim, Ronnie Magsanoc, Manny Paner and Vergel Meneses.

Who do you think was left off #TheNext15 ? Follow us on Twitter.com/Kilikilishot !