It is an understatement to say that Filipinos are certified basketball fanatics.
Many basketball enthusiasts and plain spectators flock to the Mecca of Philippine entertainment, the Araneta Coliseum and several other venues, willing to spend a portion of their hard-earned bucks to satisfy the craving for hardcourt action and a healthy dose of adrenaline rush.
College spirit has never flamed any greater than when the gang green battles the blue battalion. And the power of the crowd cannot be underestimated every time the Big Dome runs out of tickets, members of the “barangay” scrambling for that last voucher worth a general patronage.
The Philippine Basketball Association boasts off a lot of great names in the history of Asian Basketball, perhaps backing this reputation as the continent’s finest.
But behind the loud cheers of zealous basketball aficionados are transactions done in silent whispers. The “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” drama is on. Is the “deal or no deal? trade” the new name of the game?
Trading
Flip the morning paper upside-down. The sports section banners “Yeo traded for Custodio.” The process of exchanging players or trading between teams in a particular league happens when a squad decides to give up a player in exchange of another whom they observe can give the services they are weak at. Sometimes the decision comes before the observation but often than not, trading is offered for better options aimed at increasing the possibility of winning the coveted title and increasing the level of competition.
While trading can be seen as a positive agenda, in the present scenarios within PBA grounds, there are lopsided transactions done benefitting a major (read: rich) squad.
Many players have had the chance of wearing two different jerseys in one season alone. The past months witnessed how team managements and coaching staffs struggled to keep their squads, intact.
PBA teams like the Red Bull Barako, Sta. Lucia Realtors, and Rain or Shine Elasto Painters are left with the choice of maintaining only one ace player from a gamut of talented others, in an effort to keep their heads above water in what must be the domino effect of a besieged economy as they have been involved in several trades reportedly due to space and salary capping.
On the other hand, San Miguel Corp.-owned teams-San Miguel Beermen, Purefoods Tender Giants, and Ginebra Kings- continue rebuilding their teams by hiring well-paid players which the underdogs gave up.
Rumors bugging the online world spilled that a team’s valuable sixth man has been pushed to step out of his team and arrange a deal with a “prominent” team, even if the choice will likely put the said player on the team’s injured list, just so the former team can miss his services because such squad is not within the ‘company.’
Basketball buffs will find this puzzle not enigmatic.
Sister-teams gained largely by exchanging players through pre-arranged deals, PBA officials unaware that such is happening under their noses. Or perhaps acting innocent along the process.
The result: priced players get buried in the major team’s deep bench while the deprived squads maximize, arguably strain, the efforts of their aces. The result: basketball games tend to favor the well-financed squads composed of shooting stars while the underdogs remain the second best that they are.
Business as usual
Basketball used to be a sport, now it is business: an enterprise aimed at gaining profit. In the long run, this process can be seen more of a business-like rather than a professional manner. What’s worse is that the PBA appears powerless in taking control over these players’ fates. The level of competition is likely to dwindle eventually.
Surely the coaches are aware of this possibility. But Big Brother is watching. At the end of the day, it is always the big boss’s decision that matters.
What kind of reputation is the association holding into? Do they have the guts to say that it is anybody’s ball game when they tolerate rule-bending acts and un-sportsmanlike attitudes?
Faithful
But as far as reality is concerned, and most fans are clueless about the truth from the reality, basketball will remain the very habit of household steaming boob tubes for hours of partly scripted, and directed basketball actions.
We deafen the underdog with the cries, condemn the referees for wrong calls, throw curses in the air, when in fact, behind the chalkboard, a different game-winning play is plotted.
Texts and Photo by Lovelyn M. Quintos
Many basketball enthusiasts and plain spectators flock to the Mecca of Philippine entertainment, the Araneta Coliseum and several other venues, willing to spend a portion of their hard-earned bucks to satisfy the craving for hardcourt action and a healthy dose of adrenaline rush.
College spirit has never flamed any greater than when the gang green battles the blue battalion. And the power of the crowd cannot be underestimated every time the Big Dome runs out of tickets, members of the “barangay” scrambling for that last voucher worth a general patronage.
The Philippine Basketball Association boasts off a lot of great names in the history of Asian Basketball, perhaps backing this reputation as the continent’s finest.
But behind the loud cheers of zealous basketball aficionados are transactions done in silent whispers. The “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” drama is on. Is the “deal or no deal? trade” the new name of the game?
Trading
Flip the morning paper upside-down. The sports section banners “Yeo traded for Custodio.” The process of exchanging players or trading between teams in a particular league happens when a squad decides to give up a player in exchange of another whom they observe can give the services they are weak at. Sometimes the decision comes before the observation but often than not, trading is offered for better options aimed at increasing the possibility of winning the coveted title and increasing the level of competition.
While trading can be seen as a positive agenda, in the present scenarios within PBA grounds, there are lopsided transactions done benefitting a major (read: rich) squad.
Many players have had the chance of wearing two different jerseys in one season alone. The past months witnessed how team managements and coaching staffs struggled to keep their squads, intact.
PBA teams like the Red Bull Barako, Sta. Lucia Realtors, and Rain or Shine Elasto Painters are left with the choice of maintaining only one ace player from a gamut of talented others, in an effort to keep their heads above water in what must be the domino effect of a besieged economy as they have been involved in several trades reportedly due to space and salary capping.
On the other hand, San Miguel Corp.-owned teams-San Miguel Beermen, Purefoods Tender Giants, and Ginebra Kings- continue rebuilding their teams by hiring well-paid players which the underdogs gave up.
Rumors bugging the online world spilled that a team’s valuable sixth man has been pushed to step out of his team and arrange a deal with a “prominent” team, even if the choice will likely put the said player on the team’s injured list, just so the former team can miss his services because such squad is not within the ‘company.’
Basketball buffs will find this puzzle not enigmatic.
Sister-teams gained largely by exchanging players through pre-arranged deals, PBA officials unaware that such is happening under their noses. Or perhaps acting innocent along the process.
The result: priced players get buried in the major team’s deep bench while the deprived squads maximize, arguably strain, the efforts of their aces. The result: basketball games tend to favor the well-financed squads composed of shooting stars while the underdogs remain the second best that they are.
Business as usual
Basketball used to be a sport, now it is business: an enterprise aimed at gaining profit. In the long run, this process can be seen more of a business-like rather than a professional manner. What’s worse is that the PBA appears powerless in taking control over these players’ fates. The level of competition is likely to dwindle eventually.
Surely the coaches are aware of this possibility. But Big Brother is watching. At the end of the day, it is always the big boss’s decision that matters.
What kind of reputation is the association holding into? Do they have the guts to say that it is anybody’s ball game when they tolerate rule-bending acts and un-sportsmanlike attitudes?
Faithful
But as far as reality is concerned, and most fans are clueless about the truth from the reality, basketball will remain the very habit of household steaming boob tubes for hours of partly scripted, and directed basketball actions.
We deafen the underdog with the cries, condemn the referees for wrong calls, throw curses in the air, when in fact, behind the chalkboard, a different game-winning play is plotted.
Texts and Photo by Lovelyn M. Quintos
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