James Yap; Rain or Shine Elastopainter

May resbak na si Yap
(Photo credit: AKTV)

There are no sacred cows in the PBA.

It doesn't matter if you (literally) broke your back carrying a team for 12 seasons en route to multiple championships and 2 PBA MVP recognitions; if the team wants to send you elsewhere, then that is exactly what will hapen regardless if your name just so happens to be James Carlos Yap-- the man widely accepted as the "face of the PBA."

Today we learned that the Star Hotshots were sending their 34-year-old star to the Rain or Shine Elastopainters for the much younger Paul Lee, also a certified PBA star in his own right. Business-wise, this is what was best for the Hotshots. They got a 27-year-old Gilas standout, probably for a more reasonable price than Yap's long-rumored "max++" contract, who has yet to really hit his prime in a league that favors attacking, combo guards.

Emotionally-speaking however, this was shit. The whole trade was, no, IS shit.

The Ginebra Blueprint (Part 1)

Lahing Ginebra, laking Ginebra
(Photo credit: Inquirer.net)

The Philippine Basketball Association appears to be at a complete loss when it comes to trying to achieve even a quarter of the Manila Classico live audiences for games that do not feature Barangay Ginebra (and in some ways, Star Hotshots).

Just how on earth did Ginebra grow into such a cash-cow, given the fact that it has hardly been in the PBA Finals while also being a non-family friendly brand in itself? Is it really because of Robert Jaworski, Sr.’s magic? The man dubbed as the “Living Legend” has been retired for nearly two decades now. Is it because of the “masa” charm of their players? Greg Slaughter, Sol Mercado and Chris Ellis do not exactly connect with the stereotype.

So what gives?

When you wish upon a STAR

Keep on
(Photo credit: Inquirer.net)

Other than Barangay Ginebra San Miguel’s Japeth Aguilar, we have grown fond of mocking and ridiculing STAR Hotshots head coach Jason Webb at every chance we get on social media. To be clear, we are making fun of them NOT as human beings, but rather as ill-equipped basketball personalities.

Aguilar being the “has all the athletic gifts of an NBA talent but the IQ of a JV player” and Webb, well, let us talk about how Coach Jason’s first season as a legitimate PBA head coach went shall we?
To recap, STAR finished the season with a 10 wins and 19 losses record: 4-7 in the Philippine Cup, 5-6 in the Commissioner’s, and finally 1-6 in the Governor’s. It could very well be concluded that the mid-season acquisition of RR Garcia, Rodney Brondial and Jake Pascual distorted whatever mediocre-level chemistry was present in the team. Sure, Garcia suddenly emerged to play big minutes, but it is not like they gave up any of their core rotation guys to acquire his services (they traded away rookies Mark Cruz and Norbert Torres if we remember correctly).

Should everything be blamed on Coach Jason?

Free Rein

Make or break
(Photo credit to the owner)

It is a great time to be a fan of STAR Hotshots basketball.

Sure, you can look at it from the other end of the spectrum since they recently lost their grand slam coach Tim Cone and the walking mismatch that is Joe DeVance, but then you should consider that no triangle means more running and gunning. More points. More fun.

At the very least, that is what we feel Coach Jason Webb is going for.

The Beast and The Bull

Is the PBA's newest Bad Boy
bound to be like the Bad Boys of old?
(Photo courtesy of Sports5)

One look at the ongoing PBA Philippine Cup and it's easy to say who's been the most solid performer of them all on both ends of the court. With averages of third league best 17 ppg, league best 15 rpg and league 8th best 3 apg while playing a career-high 29 mpg, Abueva has continued to silence the critics (owing to his more toned down theatrics) and make a strong case for a huge, max contract once his rookie deal is up.

The only concern here now is if Abueva will ever get the nod of the PBA Board and Media and maybe at some point in his career, earn individual accolades that are usually not given to players with a "bad rep." You don't have to look that far, there's Mark Caguioa sometime in his career wherein he should've been the runaway PBA MVP but didn't get the love from the league (the year he did win the award, was probably a "do-over" by the league, but should've gone to either a TNT player or Gary David). There are others as well, most notably one of the more controversial superstars in Nelson "The Bull" Asaytono.

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?

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.

Why Beau Belga is an All Star

2x PBA MVP and.. the All Star

When was the last time that you really found it in your heart to cheer for the bad guy?

Denzel Washington in Training Day? Wreck-it-Ralph before he turned over a new leaf? Cruela DeVille or that villainess from The Devil Wears Prada (for our female readers)? How about in the Philippine Basketball Association-- have you ever really cheered for the bruisers, the enforcer: the guy who's brought into the game to dish out fouls faster than a  food attendant on a McDonald's freebie breakfast burger day?

For the record, the Rain or Shine Elastopainters' beefy center Beau Belga has logged in career averages of 6 points and 5 rebounds in almost 21 minutes of burn since being drafted 7th overall by Purefoods in 2008. He's never averaged in double figures and would probably be the last guy most PBA Fantasy Team owners would want to take into their rosters.

Monster-Bowles Returns

Monster Bowles and The Captain
having a moment

After a forgetful return/debut, San Mig Coffee Mixers import Denzel Bowles has powered the team to two consecutive victories including last night's impressive (yet foul-ridden) man-handling of the Global Port Batang Pier in an out-of-town sortie.

Though his rebounding numbers haven't rounded up to the 2012 version of himself, Bowles' is finding ways to contribute by mixing up his now more consistent mid-range game with his face-up moves to the basket. Batang Pier counterpart Justin Williams, who is reportedly on his way out thanks to a string of low scoring performances (hey, he's not the focal point of the offence, he's playing MAD defines, so what's your beef Coach Junel Baculi), was being tested to the hilt in more ways than one. To Williams' credit, he was putting in the work on the defensive end and blocking shots left and right.