Batang Gilas Falls to Canada, As Expected, 62-102.

Well, we knew it was coming. In a tune up game just a week ago, our young guns lost to the same side by 35 points. Today, when it counted, we lost by 40.

Here are three thoughts on today's game.

Thought #1 We need better guardplay.
Our point guard rotation of Terence Fortea (3.5 TOs) and Rence Padrigao (3.3 TOs) are averaging a whopping 6.8 turnovers between the two of them. Compare that to our point guard rotation from the severely undersized U17 team from 2014, Jolo Go (1.7 TOs) and Jolo Mendoza (.4 TOs), who averaged a measly 2.1 turnovers between them.

And that's with Go (12.4) and Mendoza (12.6) leading the team in scoring too. Fortea is currently averaging 7.8 pts while Padrigao is averaging 1.5 pts per game.

RP National Team: "The Others" Edition

Yesterday, I came up with a list of who would make the national team roster if we could only get players who were A) from the SMC bloc and B) weren't in danger of being suspended by FIBA. If you haven't read it yet, click this link

Today, let's explore what the roster would look like if we could pick from the players from the PBA teams not affiliated to either PLDT or SMC. So the teams in play would be the Alaska Aces, Blackwater Elite, Columbian Dyip, Globalport Batang Pier, Phoenix Fuel Masters and Rain Or Shine Elasto Painters.

Starters: JP Erram, Raymond Almazan, Gabe Norwood, Mac Belo, JVee Casio
It's depressing that this is the best starting five we can go with. Almazan and Erram are young bigs with lots of potential but aren't skilled or experienced enough yet to be the main guys against international bigs. Gabe Norwood will always be solid but he's a glue-guy, the man who fills in the gaps as opposed to being the main man. Mac Belo is still recovering from injuries and JVee Casio just isn't on the same level as Castro, Romeo, or Ravena.

RP National Team: SMC Edition

Let's face it. There's a reason why most Gilas teams have a lot of players from the PLDT bloc and barely any from the SMC group,  so I'm not going to expound on that here.

Instead, I set upon pondering a different problem. With the looming FIBA sanctions, given the "Brawl In  Bocaue", there is a big chance that most of the players from that Gilas team won't make it to the next version.

So what if the PLDT group hands off the reins of the national team (which I'm sure won't be named "Gilas" nor would it have the battlecry "puso") to their rivals? What would that roster look like?

Here's my guess:
Starters: JuneMar Fajardo, Ian Sangalang, Marcio Lassiter, Paul Lee, LA Tenorio.

This is an extremely versatile starting five, with heady guardplay, tough perimeter defense, and long range sniping. The biggest problem of this lineup is interior defense, as Sangalang just doesn't have the length or heft to battle internaitonal PFs, and Fajardo has many strengths but defense isn't one of them.

Gilas Vs Boomers: The Aftermath Part 1

It's been less than 24 hours after the "Brawl In Bocaue" (aka Gilas Vs Boomers), and the aftermath of of the incident has proven to be as vicious as the brawl itself.

Here are the first three things to watch out for:

Thing #1 Racism.
It's alive and kicking (hard). I've never seen so many racist tweets and posts bombard my feed in so short a time. The Aussie contingent (as well as several other nationalities like Lebanese, American, Singaporeans etc...) on Twitter and Facebook have been pretty vicious with their comments, with "monkey" and "dog" the most prevalent ones.

The Filipino netizens have hit back as well, but most of their racist taunts have centered on Autralia's historical status as a former penal colony. It's pretty darned bad too.

Thing #2 Consequences.
We already know that FIBA has launched their investigation on the incident. I expect FIBA to come down hard on Gilas, especially Pogoy, Abueva, Cruz, Jalalon, Blatche, and most unfortunately, Castro.

On the Aussie side, Kickert might be the only one in any real danger of being punished, although Goulding might get a warning.

On an aisde, Goulding's representatives have been making noises that, if they deem the FIBA sanctions too light, they might file legal cases against the Gilas players for the brawl. I'm not sure how far that would prosper but that's certainly cause for concern for our players.

And then, there's our 2023 hosting gig. I do think there's a realistic chance that it gets pulled out. It's the strongest statement FIBA can make and I think there is a chance they make it. If that happens, that would be just awful.

Thing #3 PBA Politics.
To be clear, I do not in any way or form condone or support the brawl. I do find it distateful, though, that several players of a rival congolomerate have publicly disparaged their fellow players. In my opinion, a little professional courtesy would have been nice. But obviously, the politics of the PBA take precedence. Which might actually work in the PBA's favor. I'm guessing Castro, Romeo, Cruz, Abueva, et al will all have a little bit more motivation when they face these players.

That being said, 24 hours ago, I said it was a great time to be a Filipino sportsfan. My position on that is now the complete opposite.

How Australia Masterplanned The Implosion of Gilas

First, let us get one thing out of the way. The brawl should never have happened. The fans and staff throwing stuff at the Australian players should be barred from all playing venues from this day forth (maybe even prosecuted). The Gilas players should have kept their cool and kept each other out of harm's way.

Because this was exactly how the Australian basketball team wanted things to go. They planned for our team to beat ourselves.

And it all started with the decals. The mind games started early, with the Aussie staff unpeeling the decals off our floor. They've never done that before, so why start now? Because they needed to. They needed to get into the heads of our players, to find a way to ignite the infamous Pinoy temper.

Three Quick Thoughts on the Lebron Signing

So. Lebron James has signed a 4 year, 154 million dollar deal with the LA Lakers.

Here are three quick thoughts about it.

Thought #1 Happiest about it:Sixers and the Celtics.
You'd think that the Raptors would be the happiest about it because they'll think they may now actually have a chance of making the NBA Finals. But the Sixers and the Celtics would be happier because now, they KNOW that one of them will go to the Finals.

Thought #2 Saddest about it: Kevin Love.
He left Minnesota because he wanted to be in a team good enough to not only go to the playoffs but also have a realitic chance of winning a title. Now, he's on a team that's even worse than the team he left behind. Seriously, would you rather be on a team with Tristan Thompson, Larry Nance Jr, Jordan Clarkson, Rodney Hood, and George Hill than a team with Ricky Rubio, JJ Barea, Corey Brewer, Gorgui Dieng, and Nikola Pekovic?

Thought #3 Basketball is a Business.
And business is good. Until Jordan came along, basketball was a passion and a profession. Michael Jordan turned it into an enterprise. And now, Lebron James has elevated it into a global conglomerate. James has approached everything from the business standpoint and he has done it tremendously well. The era of the sportsman-magnate is firmly in place.

Gilas Thoughts On the Chinese Taipei Win and the Croatia Loss

It was a wild weekend for Gilas fans, as the  senior Gilas team won resoundingly against Chinese Taipei (93-71) while the Gilas Under-17 team lost just as resoundingly to Croatia (97-75).

Here are three thoughts on the contrating fortunes of our national teams.

Thought #1 The New Gilas.
Who would have thought that the Gilas teams would finally be anchored on skilled big men, instead of talented guards? While past Philippine teams have had its share of outstanding big men, Gilas team shave almost always been undersized, and relied more on the speed and shooting ability of its guards and wings to offset our opponents' size advantage.