Rain or Shine Elastopainters

Looking back: Rain or Shine had a breakout season in 2008-2009, making it out of the wildcards for the first time in the Philippine Cup and, with import Jai Lewis, going all the way to the semifinals in the Fiesta Conference. After getting a pair of dynamic rookies in Gabe Norwood and Sol Mercado, coach Caloy Garcia installed a new system predicated on spacing the floor and dribble-penetration, similar to the dribble-drive motion offense ran by John Calipari.

Looking forward: Rain or Shine spent the offseason acquiring pieces that fit with their current foundation of Jay-R Reyes, Norwood, and Mercado, adding versatile veteran big man Mark Telan and former UAAP MVP Jervy Cruz. They also added second-round pick Marcy Arellano, who fits in perfectly and gives the team another guard who can get to the basket.

Analysis: If the PBA Press Corps handed out awards for ‘Best Coach Who Looks Exactly Like Robin Da Roza,’ Caloy Garcia would already be a hall of famer. I’ve heard rumors that Caloy was once part of That’s Entertainment. Can someone confirm if this is true, and if it is, what group he was in?

(I bet it was the Tuesday group.)

San Miguel Beermen

Looking back: San Miguel was the only team in the 2008-2009 PBA season that made the semifinals of both the Philippine Cup and the Fiesta Conference. The Beermen capped their season with a championship in the Fiesta Conference, the first for the league’s oldest franchise since 2005.

Looking forward: San Miguel acquired former FEU stalwarts Arwind Santos and Denok Miranda, but lost some toughness after letting go of Marc Pingris. Still, the Beermen are among the deepest teams in the league, but mental toughness has always been a concern for this team. They won in the import conference, but can they win the All-Filipino?

Analysis: After remaking the Isang Platitong Mani commercial with Manny Pacquiao, the San Miguel ad people should remake the old Si Neneng, Anak ni Mang Teban commercial, with Dorian Pena in the Yves Dignadice role.

Sta. Lucia Realtors

Looking back: It’s a wonder that Sta. Lucia had a decent performance for the 2008-2009 season, despite injuries to their most important players, 2008 Most Valuable Player Kelly Williams and 2008 Rookie of the Year Ryan Reyes. The Realtors salvaged a semifinals appearance in the Philippine Cup without Williams, but fell a game short of the Fiesta Conference semis when Reyes went down. The loss of the two players did not just affect Sta. Lucia, it also torpedoed the campaign of Powerade Team Pilipinas.

Looking forward: The real estate market was down in the offseason, as Sta. Lucia sold off various assets, sending Dennis Espino to Coke and Denok Miranda to San Miguel. Nelbert Omolon was rumored to be next, but the trade apparently fell through, to the delight of Rafe Bartholomew. Despite the fire sale, the team can still be competitive if Williams and Reyes come back healthy and new recruit Gabby Espinas and rookies Mark Benitez, Lamont Waters, and Josh Urbiztondo step up.

Analysis: Apart from rocking the most suave mustache in the association, Sta. Lucia board representative Buddy Encarnado spent the past few weeks organizing relief efforts in eastern Metro Manila and parts of Rizal affected by typhoon Ondoy.

Talk N Text Tropang Texters

Looking back: The apples of Manny Pangilinan’s eye won the Philippine Cup in an exciting seven-game series against Alaska. Along the way, guard Mac Cardona cemented his reputation as a true-blue superstar, as well as the most hated guy in the league. Boobirds hounded Cardona in their Philippine Cup semifinal against San Miguel, and it carried on for the rest of the season. PBA fans have not had a villain they disliked since Nelson Asaytono was still good.

Looking forward: The only key offseason addition to the Tropang Texters was veteran forward Nic Belasco, who figures to play more minutes for the team than Rob Reyes and Yousif Aljamal combined. No team has repeated as All-Filipino champions since 1985, when Ricky Brown led Great Taste to a successful title defense. That would have been 25 years ago by the time this conference wraps up.

Analysis: Did anyone else hear about the Belasco trade and thought to himself, “Hey, Belasco and Peek, 1998 Pop Cola Panthers frontline FTW!” They should have signed up Bonel Balingit to complete the troika.

Smart Gilas Pilipinas National Team

Looking forward: Coached by Rajko Toroman, the developmental national pool has made a good first impression among Filipino fans after their rousing win against a poorly-prepared Powerade Team Pilipinas Team. Led by import CJ Giles and the expected return to the team of top draft pick Japeth Aguilar, the team has enough talent to compete, but the better-prepared PBA teams would be tougher for them to handle.

Analysis: Let’s do a mental exercise. In Powerade’s loss to Gilas, James Yap was the only bright spot for the senior national team, getting easy jumpers especially in the first half. When Gilas lost to Alaska in a scrimmage last week, Willie Thriller burned the Gilas squad early and late. Can you name the Gilas player who was guarding both these guys? Do you think this is going to be a problem down the line? Should we all start standing in the corner and praying our rosaries now?