Spent last night in Tacurong City, Sultan Kudarat. We were actually able to catch the Alaska-San Miguel game over dinner, and to my surprise, the veteran cameraman we were traveling with used to shoot and direct PBA games. We basically watched the game from his technical perspective, which was awesome. He said that covering the PBA live was the hardest gig for any cameraman because of the pace of the action; if you could do camera work for the PBA, you can do it anywhere else.

Btw, how about that game? Pretty awesome, wasn't it? And it was exciting even if the referees actually called fouls.

On to part 2 of my first impressions. If you missed it, check out part 1.

Continue reading "2010 PBA Philippine Cup first impressions, part 2"

As you’re reading this, I’m probably somewhere in Central Mindanao working on a documentary project with The War Correspondent Ed Lingao for the day job. Which is awesome, except for the part where I’m going to miss the opening of the NBA season. But worry not, I’ve loaded up some posts which are scheduled to be published over the course of the week though, so you’ll have something to read despite me being away. On to the bullets:

Continue reading "Monday bullets, starring Kiefer vs. Baser, Manny Pacquiao, Ryan Gregorio, and Caloy Garcia"

A popular chorus among lazy sportswriters is that the PBA is a dying league, a gem that has lost its luster. They rattle off the reasons: the PBA’s gate attendance is on the downturn,¹ the TV ratings are down,² and fan interest is dwindling.³

Continue reading "Is the UAAP a dying league?"

At the start of the 2010 rookie draft, the PBA played yet another video tribute for Customs commissioner, former PBA board chairman, and former Air 21 team manager Lito Alvarez. With a smug grin on his face – you know, like he had just gotten away with cheating on a round of golf – Alvarez claimed proudly that because of his “savvy” moves, it was the first time that a team, Air 21, had the top three picks in the rookie draft.

Continue reading "Air 21 leads the clusterfuck that was the 2010 PBA rookie draft"

Philippine basketball has started to develop a small but vibrant community on Twitter. The Sweetest Tweets is a round-up of the best messages, in 140 characters or less.

Continue reading "The Sweetest Tweets supersized, featuring Rod Nealy’s farewell, the Jones Cup, fashion advice from Chot Reyes, and much more"

Philippine basketball has started to develop a small but vibrant community on Twitter, and Fire Quinito rounds up the best messages, in 140 characters or less.

Continue reading "The Sweetest Tweets, featuring lover boy Rod Nealy, Vince the Prince, and James Ty III"

Philippine basketball has started to develop a small but vibrant community on Twitter, and Fire Quinito’s newest feature, The Sweetest Tweets, round up the best messages, in 140 characters or less.

Continue reading "The Sweetest Tweets, featuring Rod Nealy, Sol Mercado, Robby Reyes"

Rey Joble joined GMANews.TV full-time a couple of months ago, and since then he’s been banging out excellent breaking reports on the PBA virtually as it happen. Just tonight, he managed to come out with not one, not two, but three quick reports on involving three different imports:

Continue reading "PBA Import Watch: Simpson clears height issue, Freeman returns, Lewis says goodbye"

Gabe Freeman and Arwind Santos will be teaming up for San Miguel this year

Listed below are ten statements about the PBA Fiesta Conference, which kicks off this Sunday, March 21. In the comments, leave a post on whether you think each statement is true or false, and a short explanation why this is so.

Continue reading "True or False: The 2010 PBA Fiesta Conference Preview"