NBA- The 149 day lockout, is done.

This just in:

http://www.nba.com/2011/news/11/25/labor-friday.ap/index.html##


So both sides have reached an agreement, yes? The gaps have been filled?

A handshake. That's what's happen. It's not over yet.

Both sides still have to ratify.

Hold your horses, folks.

MC

Personal Touch- PBA Return Trip

Tomorrow, I am set to watch a Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) game for the first time in around 15 years. Yep, 15 years. My dad, my uncle, and my girlfriend will be with me.

The eve of the said occasion has made me come around to recalling what it was like to watch a PBA game the last time out. If I'm not mistaken, I think it was San Miguel Beer that was out on the hardwood, versus the Alaska Milkmen. A lot of local hoops legends- like Allan Caidic, Jojo Lastimosa, Johnny Abarrientos, etc., were in uniform the last time I watched a PBA contest. Tomorrow should be a nostalgic trip not only for my "balikbayan" uncle, but, for me, as well.

My Uncle Joy and I have been talking a lot of hoops lately. We have laughed at how UP hasn't won a UAAP Men's Senior Title since Paras and Magsanoc- and consequently, since his hair was a wee bit darker. We've laughed at how my dad used to still beat me in pickup games despite having a bad back and more mileage on his knees than I. We've spoken about how the PBA used to be a more prestigious league. Now it seems out of reach, out of sorts, tawdry in its marketing approaches, even.

We've been harsh critics of the PBA lately. Put up, or shut up, time comes tomorrow afternoon.

MC

Philippine Basketball- Street Hoops

The photo here was taken in Pateros, a suburb of Metro Manila, in the Philippines. As can be seen here, hoops is big in Pateros as it is in almost any other part of any Pinoy neighborhood.

I've been reading Rafe Bartholomew's "Pacific Rims" lately. Insightful, that one is.

For me, there is so much drama involved in a backyard baller rising up the ranks towards becoming a star player. In the Philippines, names like Ramon Fernandez, Hector Calma, and Danny Ildefonso come to mind. These fellas were not particularly well off in their youths, and yet, their skills, and inherent will and love for the game, catapulted them to success. Epic.

I remember playing ball as a kid. I used to be scared of the bigger kids (heightwise) and lacking in confidence due to my weight. That changed when I got to college, but then, it took a lot for me to get healthy. Injuries, other ailments, etc. deterred me, in my view, from reaching my full potential- but it didn't matter. I loved (and love) the game, and so long as I was involved with hoops somehow, I was happy.

Nothing beats playing hoops in your local neighborhood. That's freedom. That's pure joy. Therein lies a feeling every basketball afficionado should feel- and never let go of.

MC

Basketball HOF- Miller Time

With the game on the line, and your team down 3, there's no one else in the world you'd love to have coming off of a screen a roll than Reggie Miller.

Sorry MJ, Miller takes the cake on this one.

For almost 2 decades, Miller, a former UCLA Bruin, led the NBA's Indiana Pacers to countless postseason appearances, some of which, included some of the game's most thrilling moments. Remember Miller's 6 point swing against the Knicks? And Miller's turnaround 3 point shot over Michael Jordan to force a Game 7 between the Bulls and the Pacers in the 1998 Eastern Conference Finals? And an off the glass, halfcourt heave to force overtime in Game 5 of the Pacers' first round series against the eventual Conference Champions, the New Jersey Nets?

For years, Miller thrilled us with his long range shooting exploits. His departure from the NBA in 2003 signaled the walking off into the sunset of one of the NBA's greatest players. He was a class act on and off the hardwood. Personally, I'm glad that he wasn't around during the brawl in the Palace of Auburn Hills between the Pistons and the Ron Artest led Pacers in 2004, because being involved in that would have tainted #31's legacy a little bit.

Other nominees in the initial roundtable lists of the 2012 Naismith Hall of Fame have included such names as Vlade Divac, Don Nelson, George McInnis, and Mark Jackson (not sure how this got in here, to be frank), but Miller is clearly this lot's headliner. He had the flamboyance, skill, and savvy, to get it done each and every night.

Just ask Spike Lee and those poor Knickerbockers.

MC

Local Hoops- Sinag Pilipinas

Yet another pool of National Team Players has risen from the ashes.

Enter team Sinag Pilipinas, a pool of "amateur" players from the PBA D-League, NCAA, UAAP, and Smart Gilas Pilipinas. The squad is coached by multi-titled Ateneo Blue Eagles mentor Norman Black.

The team's roster is as follows: (courtesy of the Sinag Pinas Facebook Page)


Chua, Justin C (Ateneo Blue Eagles)
Ellis, Chris SF (NLEX Road Warriors)
Garcia, Ryan Roose PG/SG (FEU Tamaraws)
Hodge, Cliff PF (NLEX Road Warriors)
Lanete, Garvo SF (San Beda Red Lions)
Monfort, Eman PG (Ateneo Blue Eagles)
Parks, Bobby Ray SF (NU Bulldogs)
Pascual, Jake PF (San Beda Red Lions)
Ravena, Kiefer PG/SG (Ateneo Blue Eagles)
Salva, Nico PF (Ateneo Blue Eagles)
Slaughter, C Greg (Ateneo Blue Eagles)
Tiu, Chris SG (Smart Gilas — team captain)

Reserves:
Fortuna, Jeric (UST Growling Tigers)
Teng, Jeric (UST Growling Tigers)

I agree with every pick in the roster, save maybe for Jeric Teng. The kid can play, and can get hot in a hurry, but also has the tendency to shoot himself out of games. Though slightly still on the immature side, perhaps the better "talent" pick would have been San Sebastian's Calvin Abueva, and multifaceted forward who, while a hothead, can take over ballgames when he's zoned in.

The team is currently competing in the South East Asian Games and, while the TV coverage of the SEA games has not been all too extensive (the games opened on the same weekend as Pacquiao vs Marquez III, so, good luck with that), the boys deserve to be supported by a basketball crazy nation that, while lacking in height and in build at times, is never lacking in heart.

Go Team Sinag!

MC

World Sport- Pacquiao's Impact

I am currently in a hotel ballroom watching the Pacquiao vs Juan Miguel Marquez bout. There have been countless pre-fight vignettes chronicling Manny Pacquiao's impact on boxing, the Philippines, and sports in general.

NBA star Kobe Bryant's recent visit to LA's WildCard gym is a fine example of how far forward Pacquiao's helped Pinoys' positive reputation go.

10-20 years ago, who would have thought a Filipino would grace Nike Billboards across the US? 10-20 years ago, who would have thought that American sports pundits would refer to a Pinoy as the best pound-for-pound fighter in contemporary boxing?

Maybe Manny's impact on Pinoy culture, and on Pinoy sports specifically, can even lead to more opportunities for Pinoy ballers.

Indeed, Manny is a icon- not only in the realm of boxing, but also, in the lives of the "common tao".

Kobe's a champion. Manny's a champion. Birds of a feather, flock together. When you inspire others to be better, you know you've made it- further.

MC

PBA- Ali Peek Shot

Now this incident got me thinking.

Talk N' Text power forward Ali Peek was shot in the neck the other night, prompting the pouring forth of memories of other incidents involving Pinoy ballers being assailed for no apparent reason.

Former FEU standout Marnel "MacMac" Baracael was gunned down in Morayta, Manila after a team practice. He eventually recovered and has had successful stints with Smart Gilas Pilipinas and the Alaska Aces.

In 1996, former Toyota Super Corollas player Arnie Tuadles was shot and killed in San Juan after a poker game, allegedly by former Pagcor chairman Ambet Antonio.

Some years back, former PBA player Bong "Mr. Excitement" Alvarez was shot in the Gluteus Maximus after being caught with another woman. The incident involving Alvarez pales in comparison to the occurrences involving the other cagers, though.

Game fixing is a favorite scapegoat for these ambushes- and regretfully so. Every level of the game in the Philippines, from the UAAP and NCAA, to the PBA, has seen some form of game fixing scandal mar its rich history. Like any other incident involving unmitigated violence, no one wins- especially the general public, who end up living in fear rather than being motivated to lend added support or morale to Philippine law enforcement agencies. It is, indeed, a dog-eat-dog world out there.

Ali Peek's been declared, "out of danger" by his physicians. How many more Ali Peeks will there be, though? How many more athletes will succumb to a fate which is a microcosm of how greed has overtaken the inherent value of an activity that should be pure of character, such as sport?

Talk N' Text team owner Manny V. Pangilinan should just use the P500K reward he's put up to partially fund a campaign against groups who seek to exploit athletes.

There ought to be a general crackdown on syndicates who use athletes as pawns, or better yet, shut down the sports betting industry as a whole (I know the latter suggestion's far fetched, but what the heck, right?).

The less useless chatter and needless movement, the better.