The PBA Offseason Report Cards Part 1

     While the Powerade Team Pilipinas is busy battling it out in the FIBA-Asia Men's Basketball Championships, team owners and coaches of their respective PBA teams have been busy themselves.  There has been a flurry of activity in this PBA offseason that has not been seen in recent years.  Now, I'm taking the time to fill up each of the team's report cards.

Draft: Michael Burtscher (1

st round), Sean Co (2nd Round)

Other Moves: None so far

New Projected Starters: LA Tenorio, Willie Miller, Jeff Cariaso, Jon Ferriols, Sonny Thoss

 

Coach Tim Cone has always danced a "triangle" dance while the others engaged in square dancing, so it's no surprise that his first round pick, Fil-Swiss Michael Burtscher, was a surprise.  The former Liga Pilipinas player is in no way highly-touted, but he is a 6'5" player and his size will be a boost to th

e Aces' smallish front line.  If he can learn the triangle, and he did say in his pre-draft statement that he is willing to learn, then he could fill in the slot of a Poch Juinio or Reynel Hugnatan in Cone's triangle.  Former Pharex Generix shotmaker Sean Co is another of the less-touted players in the draft, but active swingmen like Co could learn a lot from veterans Willie Miller and Jeff Cariaso and c

ould soon find himself a PBA job.  

Overall, though, Alaska seems to have made very little m

oves, perhaps thinking they could improve on last year's runner-up finish in the All Filipino Cup by having an extra year of experience on their belts.  Grade: B-

Draft: Ogie Menor, Benedict Fernandez, Edwin Asoro

Other Moves: Traded Gabby Espinas (for future draft picks), Traded Jeff Chan and Mike Hrabak (for Mark Andaya and Rob Wainwright), Traded Larry Rodriguez (for future draft pick)

New Projected Starters: Well, let's just say they would do well to even have a starting line up, any starting line up.

Financial problems facing Barako Bull have been well documented, so some of their moves, while they seem lopsided, are understandable  (letting go of Es

pinas and Hrabak are to designed to lessen payroll).  Meanwhile, it is hard to project the futures of their own draft picks as even the team is in talks 

of either leaving the PBA for good or deferring their franchise to the Smart Gilas Development Team.  Grade: INC

Draft: Chris Timberlake, Orlando Daroya

Other Moves: Traded Chris Timberlake, Orly Darroya, Paul Artadi Rafi Reavis (for Enrico Villanueva, Rich Alvarez, Paolo Bugia, Celino Cruz and Cholo Villanueva)

New Projected Starters: Jay Jay Helterbrand, Mark Caguioa, Ronald Tubid, Billy Mamaril an

d Enrico Villanueva

It's a virtual Blue Roast as Ginebra will now feature five Ateneo alums from their glory years of the early 2000s.  Needing to shore up their front court, the Kings targeted Villanueva and his 6'6" frame and traded fo

r him by offering their draft picks.  Further filling up a front line that used to only have Billy Mamaril and Eric Menk are former UAAP MVP Alvarez and outside-shooting big man Bugia.  The line up will further speed up an already up tempo Ginebra squad and the addition of Cruz will bolster their already deadly three point shooting.  Meanwhile, the addition of Cholo Villanueva will, er... well, let's just say the OTHER Villanueva was more important.

Overall, Ginebra, anticipating the return of Caguioa and "Hitman" Junthy Valenzuela, got more complete by adding a brigade of long, athletic big men.  While the scoring load will still be with the guards, it does not bode well for other teams that the baranggay's line up just got more well-rounded.  Grade

: A

Draft: None

Other Moves: Traded Ron Jay Buenafe and draft picks (for Chris Ross, Francis Allera and Ma

rvin Cruz), Traded Nic Belasco (for Larry Rodriguez but the deal has yet to be approved)  

New Projected Starters: Chris Ross, Alex Cabagnot, RJ Rizada, Mark Telan, and Asi Taulava

Even with Team Manager JB Baylon busy with Team Pilipinas, Coke has indeed made a splash in the off season.  Longing for a more natural point guard to help ease the load of Alex Cabagnot, the Tigers traded streak-shooting Buenafe to land Pharex Fil Am Guard Chris Ross.  Then, in moves that almost certainly signif

y that the Tigers want to win now, they traded away picks for Allera and Cruz.  With these moves, it looks like Cabagnot could afford to play shooting guard, which is his natural position, since there won't be a size disadvantage with Ross playing point.  This is officially Cabagnot's chance to show the offensive skills which helped him topple Mark Caguioa's school scoring record in the U.S. many years ago.

Overall, the moves make the Tigers younger and more athletic, so look for them to run whenever they can.  They gained by solidifying their point guard spot while losing only Buenafe, who the coaching staff couldn't use on a consistent basis anyway.  Even head coach Kenneth Duremdes seems to be finally excited to coach.  Grade: B

Draft: Rico Maierhoffer

Other Moves: Traded Enrico Villanueva, Rich Alvarez, Paolo Bugia (for Chris Timberlake, Paul Artadi and Rafi Reavis), Traded draft picks (for Jean Marc Pingris)

Projected New Starters: Paul Artadi, Roger Yap, James Yap, Jean Marc Pingris, Kerby Raymundo

Purefoods had always relied on Roger Yap and Celino Cruz, natural shooting guards, to handle point guard duties and on a team that featured scorers like James Yap, Kerby Raymundo, Don Allado, Peter Simon, that was a tough job.  The Giants have since taken care of that problem by getting themselves Artadi and Timberlake, two more natural points.  Meanwhile, the Giants have solidified their front line by trading away picks for rebounding monster Pingris and drafting highly-touted big man Maierhoffer.

Overall, the Giants did well for themselves.  While I think Maierhoffer may be an overrated prospect at no. 2, the Giants were not wrong to pick him (and forego Ross) with a draft as weak as this and with Timberlake already coming via trade.   Solving their two nagging problems (lack of point guard and overloaded front line) in a couple of trades is certainly no laughing matter.  Now, the GIants have a legitimate chance to contend, if only they can get Coach Ryan Gregorio to actually coach and not just give the TV cameras multiple poses and facial reactions.  Grade: B+  (If they fire Gregorio and promote Assistant Coach Koy Banal, the grade automatically becomes an A)

(to be continued soon)

logos were taken from the PBA website

PBA Draft: Grades are In (part 2)

Rain or Shine (Grade: A)

Notable Additions: Gabe Norwood (Draft 1st round), Solomon Mercado (traded from Alaska), TY Tang (draft 2nd round)

Notable Subtractions: Joe Devance (traded to Alaska)

Notes: When you're the cellar dweller, there is little room to go down, but this team figures to go up.  Obviously, Norwood will have an immediate impact on the team with his court generalship and athletic abilities, and he will most likely surface as the team's go-to guy.  Trading Devance for Mercado was quite a coup, since Devance was disgruntled with the coaching staff anyway, while Mercado gives them another quick and agile guard.  A potential steal in the draft is Tang, who is, at 5'7", tiny by PBA standards, can give the paintmasters a quick, heady guard to run the team.  A run and gun team with a three guard rotation like Norwood, Mercado and Tang is probably already causing Coach Caloy Garcia to salivate with anticipation.

Red Bull Barako (Grade: C)

Notable Additions: Gabby Espinas (Traded from Air 21) Larry Rodriguez (draft 1st round), Jeff Chan, Mark Cuevas (draft 2nd round), 

Notable Subtractions: Topex Robinson (released to Purefoods), Paolo Bugia (released to Air 21)

Notes:  Red Bull was probably looking for more size upfront, since most of their marquee big men (Mick Penisi, Mike Hrabak, Rich Alvarez) play better offense on the outside, but they took what they could from the draft.  Larry Rodriguez played big in the PBL finals, but he is still not the post threat that would make this team more complete.  Jeff Chan will bring in his outside sniping (just under 40% in the PBL), and could replace the loss of Larry Fonacier.  He will, however find lots of competition behind Cyrus Baguio, Leo Najorda, Kiko Adriano and the like.  Overall, their draft picks don't seem to make the Barakos better, at least on paper.  They will need to magic of Coach Yeng Guiao to squeeze the best out of his players again if they want to contend for the title.

San Miguel Beermen (Grade: B)

Notable Additions: Jay Washinton (traded from Talk and Text), Bon Bon Custodio (draft 1st round)

Notable Subtractions: None so far

Notes:  After dropping their old name (Magnolia), the beermen began to search for a point guard.  While veteran Olsen Racela remains a great player, they are beginning to look towards the future.  They are pinning their hopes on Bon Bon Custodio, a 6'0" guard from San Mig Coffee in the PBL who played well enough in the semi finals to merit a second look from the Beermen.  Custodio will have the luxury of learning from nt only Racela, but also Mike Cortez, so there will be no rush on his development.   The real story of their off season is netting Jay Washington for a draft pick.  Washington gives them size, speed and an outside shot, which they hope would offset the loss of Danny Ildefonso, who is again slowed by injuries.  If Washington can fit into the system right away, the Beermen look to go long into the post season.

Sta. Lucia Realtors (Grade C)

Notable Additions: Kelvin Gregorio (draft 1st round), Chito Jaime, Christian Cabatu (draft 2nd round)

Notable Subtractions: None so far.

Notes: Winning the franchise's first All Filipino crown is more than enough motivation to keep the team's core intact.  That's why most of Sta. Lucia's picks are more for upgrading the future rather than add anything significant. THey would have been better served picking a point guard like TY Tang, though, since Paolo Mendoza seems to have a difficult time with the point guard slot.  The Realtor's picks, including first round pick Kelvin Gregorio will face uphill battles to find roster spots, let alone playing minutes.   

Talk and Text Phone Pals (Grade: A+)

Notable Additions: Jared Dillinger, Jason Castro, Rob Reyes (draft 1st round), Pong Escobal (draft 2nd round)

Notable Subtractions: Jay Washington (traded to San Miguel)

Notes: The busiest team in the draft also seems to have benefitted the most.  Giving away forward Jay Washington netted them an extra pick and they used that one and their other two first round picks in the best way possible.  Early picks Dillinger and Castro are athletic and cat-quick guards that will definitely boost an already strong Talk and Text backcourt while Reyes and Escobal will provide a spark in the frontcourt.  There will be no more excuses for Talk and Text.  Management really did their homework in this year's draft.

PBA Draft: Grades are In (part 1)

The Philippine Basketball Association Rookie Draft 2008 was held recently at the Market Market Activity Center and it's time to grade the teams. Please note that the grades are reflective of the teams' offseason moves, like draft picks and trades, not how well they will play in the season.

Air 21 Express ( Grade: B)

Notable Additions: Mark Borboran (draft pick 1st round), Cholo Villanueva (draft pick 2nd round)
Notable Subtractions: None so far

Notes: With teams that reach finals series, very little or no subtractions might be as important as additions. Air 21 has kept its core intact and added another mobilie big in Mark Borboran and a tough swing man in Villanueva. Borboran will figure into the mix as Air 21 likes to play big. His top 5 ranking in blocks and steals in the PBL will definitely please coach Bo Perasol as Air 21 continues to attempt to improve its defense. Villanueva may have to struggle for his minutes as the Express are loaded at the 2 and 3 positions, unless he can prove that he can play the point guard position.

Alaska Aces (Grade: C)

Notable Additions: Kelvin de la Pena (draft pick, 2nd round), Joe Devance (trade from Rain or Shine)
Notable Subtractions: Solomon Mercado (trade to Rain or Shine)

Notes: Alaska has always been about Tim Cone's triangle offense, so they almost always pick what they need and not necessarily the best player left. When they picked Solomon Mercado, I thought that was a great choice and fitting substitute for the aging Jeff Cariaso, but they quickly traded him for Joe Devance. The 2007 1st overall pick, despite having a good shooting touch for a big man, spent a rather disappointing year in Welcoat, especially when he clashed with the coaching staff. Cone says he fills a need, but they would have been better off with Mercado. Devance is still more of a shooter at the three position, where they already have Tony de la Cruz. Their need was a big man to replace aging rebounding demons Jon Ferriols and Reynel Hugnatan, and Devance has not proven he can do that. If Cone can rein in Devance and utilize his size and shooting skills well, this will look like a great choice. That is a big if, though. Kelvin de la Pena was a solid PBL player for Noosa Shoes, and if he can demonstrate that he can learn Cone's system immediately, he may yet become a good back up guard for the Aces.

Baranggay Ginebra Kings (Grade: INC)

Notable Additions: None so far
Notable Subtractions: Johnny Abarientos (retirement)

Notes: Being the recent champs, not too much movement was expected of GInebra and giving away their picks helped make sure that exactly that would happen. Nevertheless, Ginebra's line up looks very formidable already, so changes may not be necessary in the near future. Coach Jong Uichico has mentioned his interest in seeking a trade though.

Coca Cola Tigers (Grade: INC)

Notable Additions: None so far
Notable Subtractions: None so far.

Notes: The Tigers traded away picks so they joined Ginebra as inactive teams in the draft. This makes them ungradable at this point. What they can look forward to though, is a full year of Asi Taulava with this team and the possible full emergence of last year's steal of the draft, Ron Jay Buenafe. It was a prudent move to dispatch aging vets Kenneth Duremdes and Jon Arigo to the bench and go for a litlle youth. Without any additions, though, the team may be hard pressed to win it all, especially in the All FIlipino Conference.

Purefoods Giants (Grade: B+)

Notable Additions: Beau Belga (draft 1st round), Jonathan Fernandez (2nd round), Rommel Adducul (back from illness)
Notable Subtractions: Rey Evangelista, Noy Castillo (retirement)

Notes: The Giants' frontcourt will now a get a big boost with the anticipated return of Rommel Adducul and the addtion of Beau Belga. Belga a 6'6" rookie from Harbour Center, was one of the team's key players in their finals victory. He and the comebacking Adducul will give Kerby Raymundo and Enrico Villanueva the back ups they sorely missed last conference. Meanwhile, Jonathan Fernandez three point shooting in the PBL, (over 46%) will be a big help, since James Yap is the team's only pure shooter. Purefoods, though, might have benefitted more from picking a point guard to help run their offense. Roger Yap has done well, but a true, pass-first point guard will help them achieve a title run. The Giants didn't get to pick early, but they did make good use of their picks.

(part 2 to be posted soon)