Alaska is perhaps the most Internet-savvy organization in the PBA. Its coach, Tim Cone, has been holding court on Twitter for several months now, sharing invaluable basketball knowledge to fans. We had this initial exchange a few months ago.

Me: “I hope you do continue with your candid tweets, coach. I’m sure everyone appreciates it. You’re almost turning me into an Alaska fan. Too bad I’m dyed in the wool for Purefoods. Heck, I’m still bitter about the ’96 All-Filipino.”

Tim Cone: “At least you’re different. You could be like everybody else and be a Ginebra fan! Chot is still bitter too, by the way.”

Even their team owner, Fred Uytengsu, is known to browse certain blogs and give fans a piece of his mind. So it should come as no surprise that Alaska, long the choice of egghead Pinoy basketball fans, enjoys quite a following online, with a lot of meaningful blog posts dedicated to the team.

On top of the list, of course, is my idol and Alaska fan no. 1 Rafe Bartholomew (author of Pacific Rims: Beermen Ballin' in Flip-Flops and the Philippines' Unlikely Love Affair with Basketball, available for pre-order now!), who wrote a must-read entry about the team on his blog a couple of days ago. Rafe enjoys a unique perspective, joining the team for the better part of the 2006-2007 season as part of his research for his book. He focused on Alaska’s up-and-down record the past few years, and tried to figure out why this happens:

For players, it's much easier to buy into the team ethic during good times. When Alaska's on a roll, the team really does feel like a family. Willie Miller's pranks will have the entire team and coaching staff in stitches, players will show up unannounced at JoLas's summertime clinics for kids and step in as coaches, and you'll find half the team sitting around a bank of Monoblock tables at Metrowalk, drinking San Mig Lights and making kuwento. Players who came to Alaska from other teams or left the Aces to play elsewhere said that while locker rooms are always tight-knit, nothing compares to Alaska.

In bad times, however, everyone seems more aware of the business side of basketball. The coaches, feeling like their jobs may be endangered if they don't produce wins, get short-tempered with the players. Fewer won-game bonuses come in, and players gripe more often and more vehemently about their salaries. They start to question the coaches' judgment: Does a younger player deserve my minutes? Why should I lead the team if there are older guys to take that role? Why do we have to spend so much practice time on the triangle?

The excerpt doesn’t do it justice, really. Go read the whole thing.

Also, if you haven’t read it yet, make sure to check out Rafe’s piece about Rosell Ellis and Alaska’s 2007 Fiesta Conference championship run. It’s some of the best writing about the PBA ever printed.

Elsewhere, great Alaska writing can also be found at Maverick’s blog. It’s from the perspective of an Alaska fan who is still bitter that Ginebra’s Chris King thoroughly dominated Alaska’s Kevin Holland back in the 1997 Commissioner’s Cup. His masterpiece is a walkthrough of the team’s 1996 grand slam, a must-read for Alaska fans.

Anyway, I saw Alaska in action during the first round of eliminations, last November 22, in a win over Purefoods, a blowout so awful that I had a Twitter rant when I wasn’t even drunk. Anyway, here are some thoughts about the Aces, in bullets:

• Before anything else, let me revive my campaign for Willie Miller’s nickname to simply be Willie Thriller. Not Willie ‘The Thriller’ Miller, not ‘Thriller’ Miller, but just plain Willie Thriller. It’s cool, and it rolls off the tongue. On the off chance that anyone from the PBA broadcast crew reads this, please take note. It’s Willie Thriller.


• Alaska tried out a different approach in guarding James Yap, starting LA Tenorio out on the Purefoods gunner and sending a double-team. It’s a common enough technique that San Miguel also employed in the semifinals. I also remember former Talk N Text coach Derrick Pumaren going with the same tactic a couple of years ago in the playoffs. Larry Fonacier and Jeffrey Cariaso also took turns manning Yap. Alaska stopper Tony dela Cruz never got the assignment, which is curious because he’d had some success against Yap before. Then again, putting dela Cruz on Yap would leave Alaska’s shooting guard on Purefoods’ small forward, which is usually either Marc Pingris or Rico Maierhofer. That’s no fun.


• The thing I was most impressed by Tenorio was not his court generalship, which was superb, or his shooting, which has become a truly dangerous weapon for him. It was his defense. He now plays defense like Paul Artadi (and if you’ve seen Artadi put pressure on the ball, you’d know that’s a great thing). What makes it so remarkable is that, unlike the much more skilled Tenorio, Artadi has to play defense like that to stay in the league. It’s that feistiness on defense that’s making Tenorio special. A team just gets so much more energy when its lead guard puts pressure on the ball.


• Also, all that annoying extracurricular crap that Tenorio used to pull back with Ateneo and San Miguel? He doesn’t do it anymore. That’s a good thing, because it’s the kind of crap that gets him punched. In fact, Roger Yap already punched him.


• Not enough has been made about Willie Thriller’s role in Tenorio’s development. Miller has been superb all conference long, picking his spots while handing most of the playmaking chores to his backcourt mate. There’s also his amazing transformation into the true leader of the team. He keeps everyone in line, and when he’s on the bench, he rabidly barks out instructions and paces the sidelines like an assistant coach. It’s like he has designs on Luigi Trillo’s job. At this point, it’s possible that Trillo just remains on the Alaska bench to look cute.


• I had a good joke about some other coach possibly being insecure about Luigi Trillo’s good looks on the other bench, but I remembered I can’t crack those jokes anymore.


• Everyone’s focused on the Alaska backcourt this conference, but Sonny Thoss might be the most important player in the Alaska lineup, anchoring the team’s halfcourt defense while finishing cheap layups off the guards’ dimes on the other end. Getting him in foul trouble is sound strategy, but Alaska’s wingmen do such a great job at preventing penetration so Thoss is rarely out of position on the rotation.


• There are a lot of great matchups in the series, but here’s a matchup I’m excited about that no one’s talking about: Reynel Hugnatan and Marc Pingris. Hugnatan does for Alaska what Pingris does for Purefoods. Hugnatan has less hops, but he has a buntot in his hair, so it’s a push. Dapat, magpustahan silang dalawa ng ice tubig.

Oh, Boy!

The trouble started with this report in the Inquirer headlined “Kris Aquino rages outside home of James’ rumored girl”:

Show biz celebrity Kris Aquino confronted a female fan of her husband, basketball star James Yap, shouting insults at the woman and her mother just outside their upscale Pasig City residence late Wednesday, the Inquirer learned Thursday.

The popular TV host and movie actress spent about 10 minutes at the gate of the Valle Verde 2 home of Mayen Austria, 35, according to Austria’s uncle, Gabby Lopez (no relation to the ABS-CBN chair).

The report went on to detail how Kris allegedly threw invectives at Austria and her mother, shouting: “Anong klaseng nanay ka? Anong klase ang palaki mo sa anak mo?”

The story took also took on a political color, after the girl’s uncle stated: “I now know who I will not vote for.” Kris’s older brother, Noynoy Aquino, is the frontrunner for the May 2010 presidential elections.

On the same day, Ricky Lo of the Philippine Star, who is known to be close to Kris, presented a much-different version of the story, and detailed the events that ultimately led to the confrontation:

Kris and James were having a late lunch at 2 p.m. that day when James’ celfon rang. The caller was a girl, crying, and saying, “I did everything already...” blah-blah-blah. Kris did what any wife would do (and considering that she and James have just survived a “Lovers’ Quarrel” sorted out during a post-Christmas family trip to Bangkok): she asked James who the girl was and why she’s crying on his shoulder. James had hung up after telling the girl that he’d call her later.

Later, Kris expressed disappointment that the issue was being used as an attack against her brother. She also clarified what really happened that afternoon:

Aquino said she was “very polite” when she expressed her “discomfort about [Mayen’s] actuations” towards Yap.

“Mrs. Austria said it was all just a misunderstanding. I told her, ‘I’m sorry to be disturbing you, but I just had to come here. It makes me uncomfortable that your daughter is calling my husband,’” Aquino said.

“At this time, [Mayen] came out. She said James called her up to tell her that I’m on my way, and to just say sorry to me. She said, ‘I don’t know why I should. I’ve done nothing wrong.’”

Aquino added: “I told her, ‘As a wife I’m telling you that it’s wrong. Why do you have to cry to my husband about your boyfriend leaving you when the guy is not even a friend of James’?’ I said to the mom, ‘Thank you. I hope your daughter would stop calling James,’ and then I left.”

Meanwhile, a text message, purportedly coming from Austria herself, started to circulate, detailing her version of the events. The message read:

"To everyone. Kris Aquino passed by house to make me sugod. She spoke to my mom. Very mad, berating us saying i always text and call james. That my mom didn't bring me up right. That we shouldn't be talking to married men. She said she's leaving james and to know that i am the last straw and the reason for their break-up. My family has great respect for Teopacos who are our family friend. Mrs. Teopaco is Cory's youngest sister. My mom raised us right. My mom didn't deserve all that. James missed called and texted na he warned me pupunta siya [Kris] sa house. He called me to apologize and say sorry. Kris said we had something going on. I don't deserve this. Most especially my mom. I have chemical depression and could have easily taken an overdose of pills because of the incident. With the hugs and love of my mom and sisters, and tranquilizers, i'm okay. Do you want Kris to be in malacanang."

This afternoon on The Buzz, Kris sat down with Boy Abunda to discuss the issue. She opened by saying that she was there to save her marriage. She then apologized to Mayen Austria’s mother, and recounted her version of events. Boy asked her about the relationship with James Yap, and after a commercial break, she admitted that she had left their conjugal home, taking their two kids with him, and they were currently staying with her sister Pinky. “I’ve tried, God knows I’ve tried. And in all fairness to James, he has also tried, but maybe, in my opinion, not hard enough,” Kris said. She added, “I have never given him any reason to doubt my fidelity. I just want the same thing in return.”



It was a curious turn of events for the couple, who were embroiled in a similar controversy in 2007. Only a couple of days ago, Kris and James thrilled the Big Dome crowd at Sharon Cuneta’s birthday concert by performing a duet (although perhaps ominously, they sang Rey Valera’s “Kung Tayo’y Magkakalayo”).

The public display came on the heels of the couples’ recovery from a spat that happened over the holiday season last month. Ricky Lo reported that the two briefly separated before reconciling just before Christmas:

Kris admitted that she and James did fight “on Dec. 17,” adding that James proceeded to Cagayan de Oro for a PBA game that same weekend.

“We had no communication until Dec. 24 when he joined my family for Mass and noche buena,” said Kris.

No, there was no “third party” (on James’ part) even if the DPA suspected that there might be by saying, when asked if there was, “It seems.”

As far as I know, James is faithful.

The fare was the same one the family has been sharing all these years, except that Kris didn’t cook her mom, Tita Cory’s, favorite spaghetti because it would remind them of her “not being around” and make them cry. According to Kris, they decided to have the noche buena at her place in Valle Verde because they are moving to Quezon City early next year.

In all honesty, Kris said that their problems have come from, 1) a deep depression on her part (due to her mom’s death), 2) a heavy workload on her part, and 3) her brother Sen./Presidentiable Noynoy’s campaign which is all-consuming for her.

I feel a bit sorry for James Yap in this situation. He couldn’t be thrilled that his wife threw him under the bus on national TV while she played victim; how’s that going to help salvage their marriage? I think everyone can agree that the girl wasn’t his girlfriend, although her calling him up might have been inappropriate.

(Like the rest of the country, I wonder why that girl was calling him for romantic advice. Is he the Papa Jack of PBA players, and was this his own little “True Love Conversations”? Can PBA fans just start doing this? I’m also a huge Purefoods fan. Can I just start calling up Jondan Salvador the next time I need love advice? He seems like he’s a good listener. Or should I start sending him cupcakes first? But I digress.)

Since this is still a sports blog (I think), I’m here to discuss the implications of these events on James Yap. Oh yeah, the basketball part. Back in 2007, after the controversy with Hope, Yap played like a madman during the Fiesta Conference. It was an import-laced conference, but he still routinely scored in the 30s during games. He capped the conference off with back-to-back 40-point games, which was amazing considering Marquin Chandler was also on the team.

As expected, Burger King made Japeth Aguilar the first overall pick in the 2009 PBA Draft. While the top picks went as planned, there were a handful of surprises, with a huge WTF moment with Alaska’s pick of Michael Burtscher. I’m guessing Rafe Bartholomew will now light himself on fire. Dude, how’s that tan coming along? My suggestion for your new Pinoy name: Rafael Baldemor. Parang bold star, diba?

The biggest trade, broken by Patricia Hizon on Twitter, is Coke’s acquisition of Chris Ross along with other draft picks from Burger King, in exchange for Ronjay Buenafe and free upsize drinks at all BK outlets. GMA News added that Marvin Cruz and Larry Rodriguez will also be going to Coke as part of the deal, while giving up Nic Belasco to Talk N Text. Coke assistant Bo Perasol also hinted at another big trade. My guess? Alex Cabagnot for one of Purefoods’ big men, possibly Enrico Villanueva.

I got 16 out of 19 draftees right, including eight out of nine in the first round. But the Burtscher pick threw my board out of whack. I'm still expecting the three guys I missed, Bryan Faundo, Ian Saladaga, and Josh Urbiztondo, to crack a roster this season. I missed Benedict Fernandez, Sean Co, and Charles Waters.

Anyway, the draft results:

First round

1. Burger King (acquired from Barako Bull): Japeth Aguilar - I love the fact that BK management is even denying that they'll sell Aguilar down the line. Puh-lease. He'll be in a Talk N Text jersey at the start of the 2010 season.

The second overall pick, originally belonging to Coca-Cola, is forfeited after it was traded to the now-disbanded Shell franchise.


2. Purefoods: Rico Maierhofer - I know they're working on a trade to get help in the backcourt, but wouldn't it be funny if Ryan "The Genius" Gregorio went into the season with 15 guys at power forward? That way he'll have a built-in excuse when they inevitably fail to make it out of the wildcard again. Btw, I saw some fans in the various message boards call him Ryan "Wildcard" Gregorio. I'd get on board, but Binky Favis might sue me for royalties over the nickname.


3. Coca-Cola (acquired from Burger King): Chris Ross - Love the pick. Too bad they don't have a Kelly Williams-type athlete, because Ross might have Ryan Reyes-like impact on the team.


4. Rain or Shine: Jervy Cruz - I'm disappointed that they didn't mention that he'll be reunited with former Hapee Toothpaste teammate Gabe Norwood on RoS.


5. Alaska: Michael Burtscher - There's no truth to the rumors that they drafted Burtscher so that Sonny Thoss would have someone to go clubbing with at Embassy, or that Joaqui Trillo and Tim Cone had a couple of rounds of scotch at Trelli's before the draft, or that Burtscher reminded the Alaska coaching staff of a young, strapping Dickie Bachmann.


6. Barako Bull (acquired from Sta. Lucia): Ogie Menor - Would this Barako Bull team even win against Menor's teams at San Beda?


7. Ginebra: Chris Timberlake - Again, there's no truth to the rumor that Jong Uichico has been collecting guards because he's putting up a security agency.


8. Burger King (acquired from Talk N Text): Ronnie Matias - This was the biggest mortal lock in the draft. Matias was born to play for Yeng Guiao.


9. San Miguel: James Sena - It's good that Sena will be playing a lot over the next couple of months for JRU, because he won't be seeing much action with SMB.

Second round

10. Sta. Lucia (acquired from Coca-Cola): Mark Benitez - Boyet Fernandez was apparently smitten over Benitez in the days leading up to the draft. Benitez didn't even have to fake his records to get drafted.


11. Barako Bull: Benedict Fernandez - Why the hell would they draft another midget shooting guard who can't create his own shot? They already have Magnum Membrere, who by the way towered over Fernandez during the photo-op.


12. Barako Bull (acquired from Purefoods): Edwin Asoro - Looks like the Energy Boosters are making serious strides in their build-up to win a championship. In the PBL.


13. Coca-Cola (acquired from Burger King): Francis Allera - I'm surprised that he measured out to be about 6' 4". This is a good pick. He could be this year's Jeff Chan.


14. Rain or Shine: Marcy Arellano - This is a great pick, giving them another guard who can get to the basket apart from Sol Mercado.


15. Alaska: Sean Co - I would write a joke here, but he's probably not even gonna make the lineup, so I won't bother.


16. Sta. Lucia: Charles Waters - See, I would have gotten this pick right if any of the papers reported that he was Kelly Williams' brother-in-law.


17. Ginebra: Orlando Daroya - Now JC Intal would have someone to tell his problems about his lovelife at the end of the Ginebra bench.


18. Talk N Text: Kevin White - Well, he is Jimmy Alapag's nephew.


19. Coca-Cola (acquired from Burger King): PJ Walsham - It's just apt that he ends up with the same franchise where Manny Ramos and Mike Gavino played. The Coca-Cola Tigers: Where second-rate La Salle big men come to roost.

The PBA draft happens this Sunday, and while there's a lot of buzz regarding Burger King possibly selling the rights to draft Japeth Aguilar (as they did with Arwind Santos, Cyrus Baguio, and all their stars), ayoko munang patulan yun. Here's my first mock draft:

The man in the picture is Graham Lim, the Secretary-General of the Basketball Association of the Philippines, and the Great Satan of Philippine basketball. He is the man responsible for putting the Philippines back on the road to international basketball perdition.

Yesterday, officials of the Samahang Basketball ng Pilipinas, the country's governing body for basketball, denounced the decision of the International Basketball Federation (Fiba) to create a special commission to mediate between the SBP and BAP as to which organization should be recognized as the country's national basketball federation.

The roster of SBP officials who attended the announcement served to underline the graveness of the issue: SBP President (and PLDT Chairman) Manny Pangilinan, SBP Vice President (and Talk N Text PBA board governor) Ricky Vargas, PBA Chairman Joaqui Trillo, PBL Chairman Mikee Romero, NCAA Mancom member Bernie Atienza, and SBP Director Noli Eala all took time out of their busy schedules to denounce the Fiba move.

This is the latest move in the power struggle between the BAP, a group that has evolved into a collection of hacks and racketeers, and the SBP, who are composed of the biggest stakeholders of the sport in the country such as the PBA, the PBL, the UAAP, the NCAA, et. al. And Graham Lim is the man behind the moves to discredit the SBP and have BAP reinstalled once again.

It's a long story, but here's what we know about Graham Lim and the BAP:

1995 - Lim becomes part of the BAP as an appointee of Freddie Jalasco, the former son-in-law of ex-President Fidel Ramos, after Jalasco uses his connections to unseat long-time BAP President Gonzalo "Lito" Puyat. Lim slowly builds up his influence by currying favor with local politicians and Fiba officials abroad. Part of his modus operandi was to organize basketball tournaments to promote local politicians, and invite Fiba officials to go on junket trips to these tournaments.

2001 - When Lim and Jalasco have a falling out, Lim throws his support behind Tiny Literal, who was subsequently elected BAP President, after years of fighting against Jalasco. Lim's faction also battles against Puyat for control over the federation, but win out eventually. Lim spends the next few years controlling the BAP, steadily increasing his clout. During this period, the BAP becomes notorious for organizing shitty basketball teams to play in various international tournaments, with little regard for the teams' quality. It should be noted that however bad the national team might be, sponsorship money was still easy to find because it still was the national team.

2005 - It all blows up in Lim's face when a lowly ragtag squad composed of ex-pros and mediocre amateurs, the Paranaque Jets, beats the national team in a game. Philippine Olympic Committee Chairman Peping Cojuangco, who was not particularly fond of Lim, moves to suspend the BAP and supports efforts led by the PBA to form a new national basketball federation. Lim raises the issue to Fiba, who decides to bar the Philippines from competing internationally while leadership of the country's basketball program was still in dispute. Lim's group replaces Literal, who had merely been a figurehead, and elected Joey Lina to be BAP President.

October 2006 - Lina and Atienza lead the negotiations for unity to end the ban, with both parties choosing Pangilinan to be the third member of the panel. The three men come to terms to form the SBP, but Lina abruptly resigns after Lim and his cohorts find the terms to be unacceptable, thus prolonging the impasse.

January 2007 - Looking for a new figurehead, Lim tricks Sen. Jinggoy Estrada into accepting the position. Even though we all know that Jinggoy is not the sharpest tool in the shed, he quickly comes around to the SBP's position after a series of meetings with Pangilinan. Jinggoy tells the BAP to accept the SBP's terms, so Lim and his band of idiots fire him and appoints Go Teng Kok president.

February 2007 - Representatives of the BAP and the SBP come to terms in a Bangkok meeting presided by Fiba Secretary-General Patrick Baumann, paving the way for the formation of the BAP-SBP. Fiba lifts its ban on the Philippines, allowing the PBA-backed national team coached by Chot Reyes to contend in the SEABA Championships and the Fiba-Asia Championships. The peace did not last long, as the BAP complained that their "member-organizations" were not being given proper accreditation by the new organization, leading to disenfranchisement. Most of the organizations the BAP submitted for recognition were paper organizations that have not held tournaments for years.

June 2008 - With the SBP national congress scheduled for June 12, the BAP held its own congress, electing Luis Villafuerte chairman and Prospero Pichay president, showing you that the BAP is concerned with nothing but quality leadership. They also file a motion to stop the SBP elections, but this is denied. The BAP sues the SBP to nullify the results of this election.

September 2008 - The Manila Regional Trial Court orders that the June 12 SBP elections be declared null and void.

October 2008 - The Court of Appeals overturns the Manila RTC decision and affirms the SBP position. Fiba applauds the decision and recognizes the SBP as the legitimate sports federation for basketball in the Philippines.

June 2009 - Due to the maneuverings of Lim and Go, the Fiba decides to form a special committee to investigate the SBP, and summons its officials to a meeting in Geneva. The SBP denounces the summon.

What does this mean for Philippine basketball? There is the looming possibility of the Fiba suspending the Philippines again. It would be a tragedy, as the country's best basketball players, the Powerade Team Pilipinas, are scheduled to compete this August in China in the Fiba-Asia Championships, to try to qualify for a slot in next year's World Basketball Championships. It could also put a wrench in the training for the Smart Gilas RP Team, the country's national basketball development team aiming to qualify for the 2012 Olympics.

After the jump, the statement of the SBP on the current mess.