UPDATE: Charles Tiu reports via Twitter that Coke has granted permission for Taulava to play in the Fiba-Asia Stankovic Cup. Next up: permission from the PBA.

Coca-Cola executive JB Baylon is taking it from all angles today after team management decided not to allow its center, Asi Taulava, to play for Smart Gilas in the Fiba-Asia Stankovic Cup. Taulava had begun to practice with the team recently to stay in shape, and volunteered his services for the Stankovic tourney after reports that several members of the team, including big men Marcus Douthit (passport issues), Greg Slaughter (studies), and Rabeh Al-Hussaini (leaving the team for the PBA draft), would not be able to participate in the tournament.

Early yesterday, Gilas team manager Frankie Lim told the Philippine Star’s Joey Villar that they had made a request to Coke for Taulava’s participation. “We have asked permission from Coke and the PBA, we hope they’ll allow us to get Asi,” he said.

But this GMANews.TV story by Rey Joble paints quite a different picture. Baylon explained how the process of asking permission went down: “Frankie (Lim), team manager of Smart-Gilas, texted Gerard (Francisco), our assistant team manager, and asked if we can allow Asi to play for Smart-Gilas in the Stankovic Cup. My worry is what if Asi gets injured? He might also get burned out once he returns here and prepare in the coming All-Filipino.”

Isn’t there something off with this picture? Coke is paying Taulava millions of pesos in salaries and bonuses, and Baylon’s concerns are valid. Now, I know the request is for a national cause etc., but shouldn’t there have been more formal communication between officials of Smart Gilas and Coca-Cola? I mean, beyond a text message to an assistant team manager who doesn’t have any decision-making powers? Why not set up a meeting, and have discussions, as well as a proposal in black-and-white? What is Gilas going to do the next time it needs players for another tournament, tweet about it?

A scribe I spoke to told me that in the PBA board, Baylon usually responds well to overtures when they come from Talk N Text governor Ricky Vargas. It actually makes sense, considering both aren’t mere basketball officials, but are actually senior corporate bigwigs (Baylon is a director for Coca-Cola in the Philippines). Perhaps discussions should have been conducted at that level, considering that Vargas himself is Vice-Chairman of the SBP. That way, Gilas could have addressed Coke’s concerns about Asi’s participation, such as insurance and burnout issues. If they set something up face to face, then they could even discuss ways they could work together. For example, Coke could lend Asi to Gilas, and the players could make a short appearance in one of the Coca-Cola Foundation’s corporate social responsibility efforts, like their Little Red Schoolhouse projects.

I’d written about the factionalism and turmoil inside the SBP and Gilas camps, and I can’t help but think that this is yet another example of it. Taulava has been practicing with the national team since last week, and Toroman has already sounded off about the need for reinforcements for the squad. And yet all that Gilas could muster is a text message? What are Noli Eala and co. doing? Oh wait, don’t answer that.

Even more worrisome is how there’s been no official communication between the SBP and the PBA – which, by the way, is one of the national basketball federation’s stakeholders – about how they could work together in the future, especially since even Smart Gilas coach Rajko Toroman admits the team needs help. We could all speculate about possible reinforcements for Gilas from the PBA until we’re blue in the face, but unless they sit down like adults, instead of texting back channels, we won’t get anywhere with this.