Jordan Pippen

Jordan Pippen
(Photo credit to the owner)

“I’ll be Jordan on offense and Scottie on defense.”

You know what they say about sleeping in the bed that you made; good or bad, you are stuck with it and will always be responsible and accountable for your words and actions. For Barangay Ginebra San Miguel's Chris Ellis, the above quote was taken from a Spin.Ph piece written by Snow Badua when asked how he sees himself fitting in head coach Tim Cone's Triangle Offense moving forward.

24 minutes 5 points 5 rebounds 1 assist 1 turnover 34% from 2 and 13% from 3/ per game

There is hardly anything Jordan-esque, hell even Pippen-esque with those numbers in nine games played so far.

But making fun of Ellis, jocosely dubbed "Jordan Pippen," would be too easy and is not why we are here. We are here to help.

But being born and raised from the old school cement courts of Pasay, this is not for the weak of heart.

You are not Jordan Pippen. You are not the savior of Ginebra. You are not even a PBA star.

Once Ellis is able to accept this fully, then he can start focusing on the little things. He seems to be a relatively nice, quiet and humble guy so we are betting on the fact that he does not really see himself as Jordan Pippen. No one is that ridiculous or self-absorbed, right?

Now on his 4th year in the league, Ellis has been mediocre at best coming from an impressive PBA D-League and Sinag Pilipinas stint.  Though his career numbers (22mpg 7ppg 4rpg 1apg) are not THAT far from his NLEX buddies turned PBA rivals Cliff Hodge (31mpg 10ppg 7rpg) and Calvin Abueva (23mpg 11ppg 9rpg 2apg), his impact has been hardly felt for a Ginebra squad that is looking for consistency.

Some areas that we see Ellis could work on, if only to help the Ginebra cause and not be the Jordan Pippen are:

1. Commit to defense

Where is the tenacity? We could have sworn that this guy was the reason Abueva was BENCHED back in NLEX because he was doing all the right things on defense. Hustling, defending, using every inch of his athletic prowess to humiliate the opposition. This is the Pippen area that we agree is very reachable for Ellis. He has all the tools to succeed. He is quicker and taller than most of his counterparts at small forward who are not Fil-foreigners (this is God's gift to them), what we have seen though is Ellis' unwillingness to get hit. He doesn't like contact. He's not a fan of getting chest-to-chest, arm-to-arm with anyone. This is why Abueva rattled him in that Dubai game. Because Abueva was in his face. Ellis tried to man up, but forgot he didn't have the offense to return serve.

2. Confidence in the jumper

Another area we would like Ellis to develop is his shooting. He has a career average of 45% from the 2-pt area, plus a decent jumpshot that we hardly get to see. Why? Because when he's open, he second-guesses himself, tries to do a fancy dribble here and there to try and beat his defender to the rim (which he never really does successfully). Take the shot. Japeth Aguilar shoots all day. Why not Ellis? The defense is focused on stopping Aguilar and Greg Slaughter, L.A. Tenorio has always been a willing passer while anytime Mark Caguioa doesn't have the ball should be celebrated. So shoot, young man. Shoot.

3. Get Hit

This is the PBA. We do not celebrate or tolerate softies. We do not care if Terrence Romeo shoots 20% from the field, we love him because we see him trying. If his shot isn't falling, he'll try to get into the lane somehow, get hit, while chucking up an ugly ass lay-up. This is why Hodge is doing okay. This is why Abueva is doing great. Because they don't mind getting hit and getting their faces messed up. Even college guards like Mike Tolomia and Ed Daquiaog attack the basket harder than Ellis. Forget Nap. He'll still love you even if you break your nose. You know what? The Ginebra die-hards? They'll treat you like GOD if you bleed for them. Serious talk.

4. Know your role

Jordan Pippen means being able to play both ends of the court at a high level. But what's wrong with being, say, a "jumpshooter part-time dunker" on offense and a "lockdown" on defense? Coach Tim already has his Jordan in Caguioa. And a Kukoc who wants to be a Jordan in Aguilar. And there is Slaughter and his big grubby hands too. So the best role for Ellis, since he plays alongside those 3 alphas, plus another semi-alpha in Tenorio, is to take a backseat and do the dirty-work. Fill the gaps. That is probably what Coach Tim saw in him. That is what we all saw in Ellis at NLEX and expected from him. Not for him to be the new Caguioa. No. But to be the guy who can cover all bases like some LeBron monster of an athlete which Ellis is. Aguilar is the most athletic sure, but if you count speed, Ellis is number one on his team. Stop looking for the ball and just play for the team.

5. Play your game

If nothing else, Ellis should just play his game. If he wants to score, then okay. Commit to it. Ask for the ball then. Keep shooting until Coach Tim pulls you out and tells you "hey that's not your role" or something. If you want to play defense, then better. We doubt Coach Tim will bench you for that. Quit trying to look for the easy way out and get dirty. Drive into a packed paint and get hit. Get to the free throw line. The air space is yours. Who'll contest you up there? Quit pandering to fangirls and fangays. You know what's real. You know who you are. We saw how good you were at NLEX. Where is that Ellis? Or are you not happy at Ginebra? Would you like for Nico Salva and Aljon Mariano to take your spot? Because they sure as hell know how to work off the ball better than you, real talk.

The above points are probably the most polite way for us to express our thoughts and frustrations, if only to see Ellis one day shining and rewarding his fans with stellar play. Not Jordan Pippen play, but solid, well-rounded basketball play. Here is someone he might want to emulate: Gabe Norwood. Not a double double guy stats-wise, but solid, efficient on both ends of the court. Ibang usapan pag FIBA Gabe, nagiging ONE PUNCH MAN Saitama siya pag FIBA e.

If he happens to chance upon this, or don't buy any of what we are saying, then he can go on Twitter and search #JordanPippen . Even Ginebra fans have caught on it.