The SEA Games Debacle: Let The Political Games Begin!

Within a day of Congressman Alan Peter Cayetano getting ousted as Speaker of the House, it seems like his replacement, House Speaker Lord Allan Velasco, will make good on his threat to pin Cayetano down for supposed financial irregularities by the Philippine SEA Games Organizing Committee (PhisGOC) which Cayetano chaired.

In fact, within hours of the change in House Speakership, news outlets were already reporting that Philippine Olympic Committee director Clint Aranas was already readying charges against Cayetano and PhisGOC chief Operating Officer Ramon "Tats" Suzara.

Here are three things you need to remember about the SEA Games issue:

1) It's not about sports, it's about politics - About a week ago, while the nauseating drama around the House Speakership was at its hottest, then-Speaker Cayetano shared to the nation that Congressman Velasco told the President that he wanted PhisGOC investigated. Cayetano then challenged him to do just that, with the payoff being if anomalies were found, Cayetano will not only resign from his Speakership but would also be willing to go to jail. But if no anomalies were found, Velasco should be the one to resign. Which makes it obvious that the issue isn't really about the SEA Games. It's just a convenient way for either Velasco or Cayetano to kick the other out of the Speakership.

2) The projected total cost of the SEA Games was 7.5 billion pesos. One of the most controversial items in the SEA Games was a ceremonial cauldron that cost 55million pesos...which was not used in real-time, anyway. After the close of the Games, roughly 2 weeks after the ceremony when it was supposed to be used, the cauldron was extinguished and has not been used since. Oh, and it has been more than 10 months since the Games have ended and PhisGOC has still to give audited financial reports of the Games' finances. PhisGoC was expected to turn over said audited financial reports last February 9, 2020. 

3) The Philippines did emerge as the overall champion of the Games, its first in 14 years. It also supposedly received the "Best SEA Games Organizer" award, as announced by Cayetano himself . What made this "feat" even more outstanding was that this award was given right in the middle of the SEA Games, which I guess meant the judges already predicted that nothing could happen to make the SEA Games hosting less than the best.

Regardless of how this ends, one thing is for certain: This isn't about doing right by the Filipino athlete or the Filipino people. this is just about Filipino politicians trying to out-politic each other.

Lakers Win Their 17th: Thoughts that Bubbled Up

 

So, when it was all said and done, it was the Los Angeles Lakers who prevailed over the Miami Heat and copped their 17th title, tying their long-time rivals the Boston Celtics for most NBA championships.

Here are three thoughts on the Lakers championship run:

Thought #1 Was it ever in doubt? Yes, it was. The truth of the matter is that the Lakers were never the overwhelming favorites to win this year's championship. I personally had the Bucks winning it over the Clippers, which shows you just how much I know about basketball. The thing is, the Lakers' not being the "sure thing" just makes this championship even more amazing. 

Thought #2 Stop the LBJ hate and give the man the respect he damn well earned. Truth be told, Lebron James was never my favorite player. He still isn't. But anyone who doesn't have him at, at the very least, the top three players in the world is a hater, straight out. Any team with Lebron James should be considered a serious title contender (remember the 2007 Cavs, with Eric Snow, Larry Hughes, Drew Gooden and Zydribas Ilgasukas?) In my opinion, LBJ has earned his place in the GOAT debate.

Thought #3 Defense (and a better bench) wins championships. Playoff Rondo, Bald Mamba, and the shadow of former DPOY Dwight Howard made most significant difference in this series. Rondo did it with defense and timely threes, Caruso did it with energy and instant offense, Howard did it with physicality and rim protection. The Heat had a decent bench with Tyler Herro, Kelly Olynik, and Andre Iguodala but only Herro delivered any oustanding value from this trio and Nunn was not ready yet to replace what the Heat lost with Dragic's injury.

The PBA Bubble: What to Expect

We're a couple of days away from the start of the 2020 PBA Philippine Cup and, for a population so starved for quality basketball, the excitement is palpable. 

Here are three things we can look forward to in the Clark PBA Bubble:

1) High-scoring Games That Mask Rusty Basketball - This will be the first time any of our PBA players will be in any sort of high-level basketball competition in the last 7 months. While I have no doubt that they have not forgotten how to score, defensive schemes and rotation take repetition and familiarity to be effective. 

I think we can expect teams to rack up the scores (and the turnovers) as they find their bearings.

2) Guards Will Be The Stars - The absence of JuneMar Fajardo affects this league so much that teams with exceptional guards suddenly become favorites. While Alex Cabagnot is still a good guard, San Miguel's fate rests on how Chris Ross and Terence Romeo can stave off the likes of Jayson Castro, Paul Lee, Stanley Pringle, Scottie Thompson, Jio Jalalon, Baser Amer, Kiefer Ravena, and CJ Perez.

3) Other PBA Big Men Get Rare Time To Shine - Again, the absence of JuneMar Fajardo means it's open season on the title "Best PBA Big Man". If the likes of Japeth Aguilar, Christian Standhardinger, JP Erram, Ian Sanggalang, and Raymond Almazan want to, at the very least, challenge Fajardo's status as best big man in the PBA, this bubble is the time to prove it.

WHAT I'M MOST EXCITED ABOUT:

PBA basketball. Maybe the long layoff will be what we need to reignite our love affair with the PBA. Definitely tuning in on Sunday for the first games and I hope you join me.

The Castro Replacements

One of the more distressing pieces of news to hit Philippine basketball lately is the decision by legendary point guard Jayson Castro to skip this years FIBA World Cup in China.

Castro has been instrumental to the rise of Gilas in international basketball and has twice been hailed as the best point guard in Asia.

Now, this question begs to be asked: who should be included in the Gilas pool as possible replacements for Castro?

Here are five options:

Mark Barroca. Barroca has proven himself as probably the best two-way point guard we have, not just in the All-Filipino Cup but even during his most recent Gilas stint. While his outside shooting is still not as good as you would expect from an elite guard, it's good enough for him to be dangerous. His defense though, puts him in an entirely different category, with only his Purefoods backup, Jio Jalalon, and Ginebra spitfire, Scottie Thompson, coming close.

The Calvin Abueva Suspension: Justified Or Not?

Ninety thousand pesos in total lost to fines. Suspended indefinitely from playing in the PBA. A reputation in tatters. Who knew that all these things would happen to Calvin Abueva in a span of one week?

Let's rewind back a little.

It's was obvious from the third minute, when a total of three players and the Phoenix head coach were all sent to the dugout, that it was going to be a contentious ballgame.

Calvin Abueva was at the heart of that scuffle too, when he pushed one of the Semerad twins away from Rob Dozier, triggering a near free-for-all that escalated when Phoenix head coach Louis Alas pushed David Semerad on the chest and Semerad flopped like crazy to draw a disqualifying foul on the coach.

Of Game Sevens and Conference Finalists

The NBA should immortalize this day, as a pair of Game 7s showed exactly why this game is so magnificent. On one end, the Portland Trailblazers upened the second-seeded Denver Nuggets 100-96 to earn the right to face the Golden State Warriors.

On the other end, the Toronto Raptors proved they finally have championship mettle, as Kawhi Leonard hit the NBA's first ever Game 7 buzzer beater to propel his team past the Philadelphia 76ers, 92-90.

Here are three thoughts as we enter the Conference Finals:

KAWHI IS A BONAFIDE SUPERSTAR. He certainly made me eat major crow, after I basically pronounced that he wasn't that big an upgrade over DeMar Derozan. But he has certainly upped his game and had me mesmerized almost the entire Game 7. The man is relentless and may be, along with Giannis Antetokounmpo and Anthony Davis, among the most complete players we have in the league so far. That being said, Milwaukee still has Giannis Antetokoounmpo (and Khriss Middleton, Eric Bledoe, Brook Lopez etc...) so I do still favor the Bucks. But it's going to be a dogfight (and maybe even another series that goes to a Game 7) and I give them a 49.99% chance of winning it.