Trade rxn: Too many to mention

When NLEX head coach Yeng Guiao said that he was considering trading a few players to form the most competitive team possible; he damn well meant every single word.

The fiery head coach and his team figured in several trades that took place during the PBA All Star break that involved four other squads. There were some surprises-- considering the names that were included, and here we try our very best to make sense out of the Guiao-manufactured madness.

Meralco: Garvo Lanete
The Bolts decided to let go of the promising Grey (who kept opening eyes with his efficient play despite the obvious lack of hype and athleticism) to acquire former Gilas Cadet hand Lanete. Lanete comes in to possibly re-start his amateurs superstar partnership with the Bolts' lead point guard Baser Amer who is having a breakout in the PBA Commissioner's Cup. The move will also allow the Bolts to focus on rookie Ed Daquioag as their premier slasher/ creator coming off the bench, with Amer and Lanete as their lead 1-2 players from here on out.
Grade: B

Out of focus

Looking for the D
(Photo credit to the owner)

This is not how a "liberated" Grand Slam team should be performing.

Flirting with disastrous start to the season, rookie coach Jason Webb and his STAR Hotshots are currently sitting ugly with a 2 wins versus 6 losses slate in the ongoing PBA Philippine Cup. It honestly seems that while people were so busy looking at how Webb was supposed to run some Golden State-like, high-octane offense, the team forgot its championship defense somewhere in the middle of exorcising the Triangle Offense from their system.

For the numbers-hungry, STAR is averaging 91 ppg 46 rpg 16 apg while giving up 95 ppg 47 rpg and 19 apg to opponents. They are also committing 19 turnovers a match, which by itself tells you that this team has a lot of problems on so many fronts.

Back to the future

Is Sangalang ready to takeover?
(Photo credit to the owner)

This was supposed to be the year wherein expectations were to be set low while the STAR Hotshots make the transition from Tim Cone's rigid yet winning ways to Jason Webb's free-flowing, youth-oriented attack.

Don't tell that to the veterans.

Led by 2x PBA Most Valuable Player James Yap, the STAR Hotshots are fighting in games despite their current 1 win 2 losses card. Surprisingly, instead of the younger guys on the roster, it's Yap and Marc Pingris who are putting up the numbers and playing like they were freed from whatever shackle it was that held them back. Yap is taking more shots (his % suck, but shooters shoot) while Pingris is roaming and lurking. Sure, PJ Simon is playing less minutes but he is still their 3rd leading scorer behind Yap and Mark Barroca.

So where will the Hotshots go from here?

To infinity and beyond

Sino Coach ko ulit?
(Photo credit: Sports5.ph)

Where do we go from here, STAR Hotshots?

The architect of your 1st PBA Grand Slam (plus two other titles during his tenure), Tim Cone, is now officially out of the door and with him-- his greatness, coaching philosophies, Triangle Offense and so on. In his place will be Jason Webb, as announced in a joint press conference that should've been exclusively for Cone-- but hey, it's San Miguel Corporation, who has little to no coaching experience both in the amateurs and professional ranks.

Great. Just great.

Here is a guy who, among all of Cone's deputies, has the least experience and doesn't really look like he's meant for the part. There's always that one guy who, in team meetings, school group projects, who is the leader. Then there's the other guy, the second guy, who just pushes the rest and makes it happen. You see it in basketball, during timeouts. The coach does his thing and gives instructions, the lead assistant whispers in the ears of the rest. Eggs them on. Tells them what to do. Clarifies things. There are guys in the huddle that would make you think "ah, this guy will be a head coach someday."

But Webb?

Dethroned

Old timers need some help
(Photo credit to Sports5.ph)

As you get older, there are certain things that you slowly realize:

Your timing is off; your mind knows what you want to do, but there seems to be a split second lapse between judgment and action.

You find yourself needing to exert more effort, to something that you would routinely perform. Be it running, jumping, hustling.

And when you find yourself in front of a wide-eyed youngster, who you know will always go left on a crossover, which he does, and you smile to yourself thinking "I got you!" only to hear the whistle-- or worse, lose your man completely as you turn your around and see him waltzing in for an easy lay-up.

Age. It happens to the best of us.

With yesterday's unceremonious sweep at the hands of the Alaska Aces in the Semifinals of the PBA Governor's Cup, the Purefoods STAR Hotshots find themselves officially dethroned in the 40th season of the league after taking home all three titles just the year before.

Is it time to rebuild?

PBA GC SF: (1) Alaska vs (5) STAR

The series' X-factor is in this picture,
but not who you would think
(Photo credit to Sports5.ph))

Forget Manila Classico (which celebrates the fanbases more than it does the actual two teams since performance/ championships-wise, they are simply non-equals), this is the real rivalry that has more history and bad blood to it than anything else in the last four-five years.

Ideology vs machinery. Building a team the right way in hopes of winning championships vs one that can just as easily acquire any given player to fit its needs en route to a title romp. At the end of the day, this is what it all boiled down to from the outside looking in specially for head coach Tim Cone. A new challenge, more money, job security and so on vs a franchise that has been repeatedly rumored to be up for sale since when? 2012? We've been hearing about it for two-three straight seasons now.

There is no loyalty in professional sports, only business.

STAR has the, well, starpower. Alaska has the hustle and endless amount of energy.

Something's got to give.

PBA GC QF: (4) GlobalPort vs (5) STAR Hotshots

Pambansang Ex-Husband
kontra Pambansang Ex-Boyfriend.
Allegedly. Hihi.
(Photo credits to Sports5.ph)

"To be the man, you have to beat the man."

Call it a "rite of passage" for Terrence Romeo, Stanley Pringle and the rest of the "young" GlobalPort Batang Pier squad who are making their first trip into the PBA Playoffs. Standing in the way? The defending champions STAR Hotshots who started the conference (and basically the entire season) jet-lagged from their Grand Slam high from last year.

Lately? We've been seeing Marc Pingris once again pulling his shorts up and crouching low. We're seeing James Yap making clutch plays over the toughest of defenses. Marqus Blakely is back to being Black Sakuragi (which is somewhat racist, when you think about it) though in a more toned down manner.

Romeo has been frothing at the mouth for an opportunity to play at this level of basketball. He's a high stakes player, built for superstar-making games. There are only two teams that you need to be at your best to become a household name in the PBA: Ginebra, and STAR (Purefoods).

It's the Golden Ticket to the PBA's Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory of Superstardom.

Stars are bland

Look up, look up!
(Photo credits to Sports5)

Definitely not a typo.

The re-christened, yellow-and-red sporting STAR Hotshots are finding it even tougher to defend their third and final crown from last season's grand slam romp, specially with the absence of future cornerstone 6"7 Ian Sangalang. Head coach Tim Cone has stuck mostly to playing an eight-man heavy rotation, with other guys playing sparingly by design.

Thus far, the Hotshots' record is five wins versus five losses. Stuck somewhere in the middle of the Playoff hunt.

Leading the team's hope for a last title defense are returning import Marqus Blakely (39 mpg 23 ppg 13 rpg 3 apg), Marc Pingris (29 mpg 8 ppg 6 rpg 2 apg), Joe DeVance (29 mpg 11 ppg 3 rpg 2 apg), Alex Mallari (28 mpg 10 ppg 3 rpg 3 apg), Mark Barroca (29 mpg 10 ppg 4 rpg 3 apg) and 2x PBA MVP James Yap (25 mpg 11 ppg 4rpg 1 apg). Guys like Justin Melton and PJ Simon are contributing as well, though it appears that they are having some trouble meshing with the rest or excelling in limited minutes (specifically Simon).

PBACC The Quarterfinals: Purefoods vs Alaska

"Siya na naman?!"
(Photo courtesy of Sports5)

Do you believe in fate?

It seems that it cannot be helped. Purefoods head coach Tim Cone will never, truly be rid of his Alaska ties (we doubt he'd want to anyway), and now he finds himself squaring off with the very same team in the 2015 PBA Commissioner's Cup Quarterfinals if only to win another championship.

Coach Tim has done a marevelous job in adding substance to what was once simply a "glamour" team. He taught every one from James Yap to Jerwin Gaco how to play the right way, how to read and react to offenses and defenses, and to basically how to keep winning.

On the other side of the fence, Coach Alex Compton inherited a team of hungry young rascals and veterans, shaped them into something of a more cohesive unit who enjoy playing together. Now, JVee Casio and RJ Jazul don't shun away Calvin Abueva whenever he pesters them for the basketball. Now, Abueva knows where he's supposed to be and how he can help. Yes, the antics are still there, but finally, they have allowed "Abueva to be Abueva."

Which means all hell is going to break loose when Abueva crosses paths with Yap.

Don't call it a comeback

Kala niyo sawa na kami mag-champion?
(Photo credits to the owner)

Coach Cone was not brought into the Purefoods' fold to win a championship. He wasn't brought in to simply win a PBA Grand Slam (though that could have easily been one of the targets/ objectives).

He was brought in to (re)establish a (new) dynasty in Philippine basketball.

Name any past or present San Miguel Corporation-employed head coach in the last ten to fifteen years that was given as much leeway and power as Cone. You'll have to go back two more decades or so, to the days of the iconic Robert Jaworski, Sr. and Ron Jacobs, to truly understand how much creative control and power Cone was given when it comes to the direction of the team, player trades and acquisition and basically what sort of product to put on the basketball court.

PBA GovCup Finals: Family Feud

Like most family feuds,
it's going to be ugly
(Photo courtesy of Sports5)

Did you know that the (established) San Miguel Corporation PBA franchises: Petron Blaze, San Mig Coffee and Barangay Ginebra have a grand total of 36 PBA championships among them? Petron Blaze is lording it over with an astonishing 19 titles while the little brothers—SMC and Ginebra are trying to create separation from the other with 9 and 8, respectively.

With Petron Blaze and San Mig Coffee being armed to the teeth (both possess arguably the most star-studded and star-heavy eight-man rotation in the whole PBA), it’s going to be mighty interesting how the series turns out. We explore the match-ups and who has the edge overall:

PG Alex Cabagnot/ Chico Lanete vs Alex Mallari/ Mark Barroca

It’s going to be Cabagnot’s heady play and clutch shooting taking on the ultra aggressive Mallari and the cerebral and efficient Barroca. Quite frankly, we’re not loving the match-up for Cabagnot since he’ll be asked to chase either of SMC’s guards against a bunch of brush and flare screens. Don’t be surprised if the Fil-Hawaiian point guard lands in foul trouble early or if we see Denok Miranda make some early appearances just to give Petron a different look.

Adv SMC

PBA GovCup Finals: San Mig Coffee aching for redemption

Ilang panalo na lang at mahahagkan ng muli
ni Barroca si Erika Padilla
(Photo courtesy of Sports5)

The San Mig Coffee Mixers are back in the PBA Governor’s Cup Finals after disposing of a gutsy Meralco Bolts squad in their Best-of-Five affair, going 3-1. 

This time around, the Mixers were led by do-it-all import Marqus Blakely, a re-calibrated 2x PBA MVP James Yap, Joe DeVance, steady Mark Barroca and rookie Alex Mallari. Those five did enough for the team that the sub par performances of usually dependable stat-sheet stuffing stalwarts PJ Simon and Marc Pingris.

What’s next for the Mixers? Well, if they can have it their way, a Governor’s Cup championship trophy at season’s end.

PBA 2012 Draft: The Do-Over

What if teams were able to make a do-over?
(Photo courtesy of Sports5)

And so we have come to the (near) end of another great professional basketball season for Philippine hoops: the country (behind some of its best, pro-players) was able to re-establish itself as a contender in the region, all the concerned basketball parties are in (or at the very least, seem to be) in unison and new names have come out of the collegiate and amateur ranks that will carry the winning tradition and proud Filipino fighting heart for the next decade or so.

Here we rank the 2012 PBA Draftees (1st round plus some promising names) based on how well they have performed this season (and going forward) vis-a-vis the team that should've/ could've picked them if they were able to go back in time. 

1 Petron - Calvin Abueva 

51 g 26.41 m 12.25 p 9.37 r 1.82 a 

The numbers, the minutes, the intensity-- it speaks for itself. At a modest 6"1 1/2 we dare you to name us anyone of the same height the last five years who can put up the same numbers AND change the tempo/ mood/ feel of the game simply by checking in OFF THE BENCH. As loaded as Petron is, you just cannot argue with talent and heart. You don't pass up on a guy like this, you make room for him and trade away the others to fill in whatever hole you have. Yeah. The Beast is here to stay, ROY-MVP or not.

2012 PBA Draft pick order: 2nd, Alaska

PBA GovCup Semis: San Mig Coffee vs Meralco

With Maliksi out, PJ Simon's
got buckets on mind
(Photo courtesy of Sports5)

With Game 1 already out of the way, things are looking mighty interesting between the San Mig Coffee Mixers and the Meralco Bolts. We breakdown the match-ups and take a look at the necessary adjustments we feel should be made if this series is to go the distance.

PG: Mark Barroca/ Alex Mallari vs Mike Cortez/ Chris Ross/ Chris Timberlake
In a nutshell, here's a token summary of how point guards are supposed to be: can play the half court, can run, be the designated bail-out scorer AND make game-changing stops every now and then. The Mixers' Barroca is steadily boosting his stock under the tutelage of assistant coach Johnny Abarrientos (and now also of Olsen Racela) while Mallari looks like he's found a niche in the pros as a "sparkplug" type. On the flipside, the Bolts have a troika of guards who also possess most of the above-mentioned qualifications save for one-- they can't shoot a lick. The Cortez acquisition gave them a heady floor general who can control the tempo, but it still didn't answer their need for another on-court offensive threat. Given the defensive nature of both teams, the point guard/s that can dictate the pace of the game will win it for his team—even if it means having to put their “scoring caps” on.

Adv. SMC

Finals Rematch, Finals Preview

Amoy rematch.
(Photo courtesy of PBA InterAKTV)

In a rematch of last PBA Governor's Cup Finals, the defending champions Rain or Shine Elastopainters hacked out a gritty 79-75 win over now "rivals" San Mig Coffee Mixers.

It got testy, chippy, physical and had that feel of a PBA Finals. Beau Belga, recently cheered by thousands- millions of Filipinos, was welcomed back to the loving arms of PBA fans with a resounding chorus of boos after a series of, well, classic Belga defensive plays. James Yap had fans screaming, but Chris Tiu had his supporters at the SM Mall of Asia Arena just the same.

San Mig Coffee bets the house on Mallari

More "you reach, I teach" sessions for Mallari
now that he's with James Yap

What a difference back-to-back ass-whoopings makes in the PBA huh?

In a surprising turn of events, the San Mig Coffee Mixers decided to part ways with underutilized yet very promising former PBA Finals MVP Jonas Villanueva, JC Intal and Aldrech Ramos to bring in Petron's rookie Alex Mallari, Barako Bull veteran and under-sized power forward Leo Najorda and another rookie pint-sized point guard Lester Alvarez.

See, we tried to defend this move by saying that the Mixers did it in order to stretch their rotation and become "deeper." Then we took a look at the names on the roster, the ones that they're sending away and the ones who are coming in and it didn't take too long for us to realize that that rationale wasn't going to stick. There's Villanueva, a guy who was plagued by injuries under head coach Tim Cone but showed that he knew how to run the point position to a "T" when he's healthy. Intal may have not blossomed into the elite perimeter defender/ Scottie Pippen to James Yap's Michael Jordan project that we all hoped for but the guy has tremendous hops and can move on the hard court. Then there's rookie Aldrech Ramos, a 6"7 guy who plays defense and has a nice soft touch from the perimeter.

The Good, The Bad and The Ugly

Hay salamat Panginoon at natupad
ang dasal ko na mabalik sa contender

What a day it has been for local professional basketball-- while it may not look like much, anytime you can get five teams to agree on a deal that would have ten guys changing uniforms no matter their status in the league, this "mega deal" could prove to help balance a top heavy PBA come next conference.

To summarize, here are the guys who were part of the trade and where they have landed:

Ronald Tubid: Petron Blaze Boosters
Mac Baracael: Barangay Ginebra San Miguel
Aldrech Ramos: Alaska Aces
Alex Mallari, Leo Najorda and Lester Alvarez: San Mig Coffee
JC Intal, Jonas Villanueva, Allein Maliksi and Jojo Duncil: Barako Bull Energy

Now to help keep things interesting (and give us entries to have fun with while waiting for the Commissioner's Cup to start), we will split the entries into three parts. Since San Mig Coffee and Barako Bull got the most players out of the deal, it is only just that we give those teams separate entries all to themselves.

PBA Draft Class 2012: Young and restless

The Kraken more role player than star?

Now that Calvin Abueva, picked number 2 overall by the Alaska Aces and arguably the most feared/ revered player of the lot, made his PBA debut with last night's 88-86 triumph over the Petron Blaze Boosters, we can proceed with an initial report on how the rookies have fared so far.

1. June Mar Fajardo (Petron)
He's been solid, but obviously still raw. Not to say that he doesn't know what to do with the basketball unlike big guys before him such as E.J. Feihl, James Walkvist and Samigue Eman, but right now it would be safe to say that Fajardo is more on the track to be the next Sonny Thoss than Danny Ildefonso (not that it's a bad thing). Petron's been wasting some of its sets in trying to get the big man ready down low, but they're better off running and Fajardo doing the dirty work.

Rain or Shine survives The Kraken

Basta si Jeff Chan ang sumipat, ilista mo na

With all due respect to the so-called powerhouse teams (on paper) in the PBA, the Rain or Shine Elastopainters look like they're the most complete team in the league today. First to go down are the heavily-favored Petron Blaze Boosters who not only have a bunch of guys who could easily fill out a Team Pilipinas/All Star roster, but also the league's number one overall draft pick and a guy expected to dominate for years, 6"9 June Mar "The Kraken" Fajardo.

The game started out real close, but come the second half the Elastopainters buckled down to work and started flexing their muscles-- literally. There were hard screens and fouls that appeared to have knocked the wind out of the Boosters-- unable to keep in step with the Elastopainters who were either driving to the rim or just passing the ball all over the court to find the open man.