A Coaching Carousel for the MVP Teams?

Could Norman Black take his magic back to the PBA? (pic source)

Here's what came out in today's Philippine Daily Inquirer, under the headline "Norman Black to Talk 'N Text, Chot Reyes to Smart Gilas five?" :

"Norman Black is set to make a return to the Philippine Basketball Association as a coaching rigodon is expected to be formalized this month involving teams bankrolled by business tycoon-sportsman Manny V. Pangilinan.

The arrangement will include coach Chot Reyes moving over to the Smart Gilas national team from Talk ‘N Text in the PBA.

But there’s a catch.

A source privy to the details of the arrangement told the Inquirer that even after the deal is made official, it will only be put in motion after the 2012 UAAP season.

Black will move to the Talk ‘N Text camp while Reyes will replace Serbian Rajko Toroman, who was offered the consultant’s post at Smart Gilas after serving as its head coach."

That rang a bell in the heads of a few posters in the online community as it sounded awfully familiar to what a certain "jamalsampson" had posted in the Interbasket forums on a thread about the Philippine Under-16 team about a month ago that went something like this:

"there is new talk within the MVP circle that there will be a rigodon of coaches in his backyard. (but they get to steal one coach from the otherside). Its like a wholesale promotion for everybody.

Rajko Toroman might not be re-signed or is to be retained as consultant

Chot Reyes is to assume the Head Coach position and Project Director for the new generation of GILAS whose core would come from the SEA Games bound SINAG.

Norman Black would go back to the PBA and replace Chot Reyes as Talk N Text Coach.

Olsen Racela is to go back to his Alma Mater and become the new Head Coach of the Ateneo Blue Eagles.

Getting his opportunity to Coach the U18 National Team is Jamike Jarin.

Ryan Gregorio retains his current positions at MERALCO.

Ronnie Magsanoc moves to San Beda Mendiola as Head Coach.

Frankie Lim retains his position at Maynilad but gets a executive position.

Boyet Fernandez retains his position in NLEX." 

A few thoughts:

1. "Rigodon," a word my MacBook's dictionary does not recognize, is actually a variant of "rigadoon" or "rigaudon," which is "a French baroque dance," according to Wikipedia. Now you know! 
2. I think Coach Toroman did a great job given what he had at the time. It was a bit unrealistic to assume that the Philippines would be able to just return to the forefront of Asian basketball in a blink of an eye. Keeping him establishes continuity and a system, which are both important things if we want to really pursue that Olympic dream
3. If you're going to replace Toroman, doesn't it make more sense to replace him with Coach Black, seeing as how he assembled and will coach the Sinag team for the SEAG aka Gilas V2.0? 
4. Not sure how I feel about Olsen Racela as Ateneo head coach. I haven't seen him coach enough of the RP U-16 team to make an informed decision, but if or when Black moves on, he leaves some pretty big shoes to fill and I don't think Racela, who has coached for less than a year if I'm not mistaken, can even come close to filling them. 
5. Why stop at a five-peat? Because it's one more than Franz Pumaren? If Ateneo keeps winning, then I say keep Black, especially if the door is open to match or even exceed Baby Dalupan's record. 
6. I get the feeling that if Black leaves, so too does Kiefer Ravena. That might just be me though. 
7. Who would I pick to coach Ateneo if Black left? Leo Austria would be at the top of my list, with Jamike Jarin second (should it be Jarin, we would live in a world where the Blue Eagles pressed more than the Green Archers).
8. That said, Jarin deserves a high-profile gig like the RP U-18 team. Plus, if past history is any indication, the combination of Racela currently handling the U-16 and Jarin helming the U-18 means Ateneo will get a huge edge in recruiting the blue chip players that make up those squads.
9. I'm not sure how thrilled San Beda fans would be with Magsanoc at the helm. There has always been a segment of Red Lions fans unsatisfied with Coach Lim, but you have to give credit where it is due, Lim does a masterful job shuffling the minutes of a stacked squad, and has crafted a Team B that could take over for the current Team A with little to no downgrade, save perhaps for a lack of depth. 

Obviously, the first domino to fall will what happens when Toroman's contract expires in November. Until then though, this is a ton of speculation that may not actually result in anything.

Will the Prodigal Eaglet Come Home?

Ael Banal, with the Blue Eaglets. Photo from here, by Jamie Lihan

Despite the lack of Kiefer Ravena news in recent weeks, Ateneo continues to make recruiting headlines, as posters on the Blue Eagles Nest of the GameFace Forums breathlessly broke the news that "The Prodigal Eaglet", Ael Banal, had returned to the nest and participated in a practice Thursday night with ADMU Team A.

Banal, a Blue Eaglet in the Juniors Division, was once considered a lock to move up to the Seniors team. After winning back to back titles with the Eaglets, Banal graduated and passed the ACET, with Management Economics as his course. Though he would have had to sit out a year due to commitments with the RP Youth Team, many Eagles fans dreamed of a young perimeter core comprised of Kiefer Ravena, Ael Banal and Gwynne Capacio.

Instead, rumors arose that Banal would be taking his talents to other schools. Some sources claimed that Banal was "turning to the dark side" in the minds of Ateneo fans by opting to become a Green Archer, joining his older brother Gab. Later on, it was said that his RP Youth Team coach Eric Altamirano had swayed the young sniper into signing with the NU Bulldogs.

After the U-18 tournament, Ael opted not to enroll for the second semester in a college and basically disappeared from the radar, save for a few appearances. As late as last October, sources told me that Banal was practicing at the NU gymnasium along with other NU players. Then last December, word arrived that he was practicing in the U.S. along with Gab, and Green Archer Joshua Webb, and that Ael was reportedly trying out for several Division I US NCAA schools.

According to the scouting report by GameFace poster "yungha", Ael is:

"still a dead-eye shooter. pero mabagal pa rin release. the younger von pessumal seems to have caught up with him physically as from my vantage point von looked bigger and a bit taller than ael. si ael payat pa rin. physically von would be more ready for the college game but of course we've always known that ael has greater range"

The situation for Banal is now one of uncertainty. Clearly, the time away from the sport and a strict practice regimen has hurt his game and affected his growth. He is now in a situation where he will have to compete with younger, perhaps, more talented players, vying for slots in Season 74.

A reunion with Ateneo is not out of the picture, but one must first consider several things. First, Ateneo has an open try-outs philosophy, meaning any prospective player can join Team A practices. That means it's not uncommon for players to test their mettle against the Eagles, and then commit to other schools (one good example was DLSZ's Nico Elorde, from last season, who partook in a lot of practices, enough to make some think that he was considering turning in his green jersey for a blue one). Second, unless the situation has changed, Banal's father, Joel, supposedly has some conflict with the Blue Eagles coaching staff, strong enough that he considered taking Ael's talents to NU before.

Said conflict is rumored to be rooted in the possibility that Banal might require a stint on Team B. Unfortunately for Banal, if the above report is correct, a year in Team B might be the best thing for him, as he needs to improve on multiple fronts. Given the scarcity of slots on Team A of Ateneo next season, it seems highly unlikely that there will be room for him in Season 74.

That leaves the door open for La Salle (unlikely, given the glut of guards), NU, and UP (desperately needs a star), as possible destinations for him should Ateneo decide to stick to their guns.

It would be unfortunate if Ael cannot find a good landing spot for himself. He's made a few mistakes before his collegiate career has even begun, but hopefully, he can right himself and contribute to a winning program.

Kevin Ferrer is ADMU-bound

EDIT: Not.

Kevin Ferrer; image from UAAPSports.com

According to sources within the Blue Eagles Nest forum on Gameface, Ateneo de Manila University has successfully recruited UST Tiger Cub standout and UAAP Juniors S73 MVP Kevin Ferrer.

However, don't expect to see the 6'4" Ferrer, who averaged 19.9 points, 13.1 rebounds and 2.6 blocks in his final year in the Juniors, on Team A next season, as he'll be taking his talents to Ateneo Team Glory Be for the entirety of S74.

The reason behind this is because UST is invoking the Soc Rivera rule, to force Ferrer to redshirt a year. Under UAAP rules, a school can opt to have one of its juniors graduates sit out for a year should he or she decide to transfer to another school for college.

Buzz had been building about Ferrer transferring since the last game of the Juniors finals, when Kiefer Ravena comforted Ferrer after the latter's team fell to the former's Blue Eaglets. In S72, Ravena also approached the star player of the opposite squad, Gwynne Capacio, and the Eagles later acquired Capacio's services.

Capacio sat out last year as part of his commitment to the RP Youth Team.

EDIT: Not quite sure why a ton of people reading this post again, judging by the views, but since this obviously did not pan out...

At the time of writing, sources felt that Ferrer had a very strong chance to go to Ateneo. In fact, it was even mentioned by Rick Olivares when he interviewed Kiefer Ravena after the latter had decided to stay home. Ravena is very good friends with Ferrer, and it was he who was encouraging Ferrer to switch to Katipunan, allegedly. That part was edited out of the final interview.

What made Ferrer change his mind was a combination of things that included UST really wanting to keep its blue chip star, given its 400 year anniversary. As such Ferrer got to meet with a prominent UST alumnus basketball player who changed his mind about moving. The rest as we know is history.

Mailbag Mondays: 01/17/11

Q: word was out that olsen racela will (supposedly) take over the U-18 SBP team. any news about him being a part of the admu coaching staff officially? because if that is so, then i smell an MVP orchestration here of bringing in young hopefuls to the Blue Squad
- - Basketballphenome

CHF: Word that Racela would be tapped to take over the U-18 SBP team can probably be best traced to this article on GMA News, but it's hardly been formalized. Racela's current focus is to win one more championship, then retire, and then perhaps consider taking up coaching.

As to Racela being linked to an assistant coaching spot at ADMU, his name was in fact circulated after Jamike Jarin ended his stint as Blue Eaglets coach, but again, nothing concrete.

The U-18 gig has been essentially an "eat all you can buffet" for the coaches who have taken it recently (Franz Pumaren, Eric Altamirano), allowing them to poach recruit after recruit, so it's a reasonable assumption, but given the fact that Ateneo is currently the three-time reigning champ of the UAAP, it's hard to see what more effect having a former Atenean head the program can have. To put it another way, Pumaren needed it to replenish his roster thanks to the PEP test suspension year and Altamirano needed it because of NU's reputation as a doormat team. The Eagles are far away from such situations.

Q: wala na si Paul Lee sa UE noh? 
- - Kevz


Coach Lawrence Chongson created Paul Lee, and Paul Lee created Coach Lawrence Chongson. Without Chongson's free-flowing offense, Lee would have struggled, or at least would not have been as explosive, running set plays, and without Lee's penchant for nailing unlikely shots in big time situations, Coach Chongson's lack of a scheme would have looked stupid. For those reasons, it's only fitting that Lee decide to leave with the exit of his coach.

Now take note, nothing has been decided officially yet, but it seems all but certain that Lee will instead opt for the PBA draft. While there is a loyalty element to the situation, there's also a pragmatic aspect. Should Cordinera be more structured offensively, or if he asks Lee to play defense, Lee could wind up with a subpar year, hurting his draft stock. Better to just bolt now since it was unlikely anyway that the Red Warriors could have made some noise in the Final Four.\

Got a question about the UAAP? Email chinoyhoopsfan@gmail.com and your letter will be answered here on Mondays!