As the new PBA season opens on November 17, I can feel a sense of personal excitement with the entry of rookies in most of the teams.
Last year, I watched with bated breath the debut of Junmar Fajardo, who has fully justified his promise as the number one draft pick.
Abay, as he is fondly called in Cebu, has proven that he is not only a tall, big guy, but a tall, big and dominant big man.
This year, I am sure most of us will be looking at how Greg Slaughter is going to perform. The entry of Greg has even excited his own teammates at Barangay Ginebra.
The iconic Mark Caguioa, whose talent is beyond question, was ecstatic and outspoken that he wanted Greg Slaughter in the Barangay. Even in his waning years, whatever Mark Caguioa wants, he gets.
It was actually a no brainer. If Ginebra picked any other rookie, it would have been the biggest boo-boo in PBA’s drafting history.
Greg is not as skillful as Junmar, but he is not also the typical big man who enters the PBA carrying with him his height and weight and nothing else.
When they were playing against each other in Cebu, Greg was the only one who could limit Junmar, and vice-versa.
The only other player of recent memory who had the size and the heft going into the pro-league, together with obvious potential would be Sonny Thoss.(Is my memory correct that the giant Milkman traces his roots to Cebu also?)
Fajardo and Slaughter are however a few notches above the skill level of Thoss in their rookie year. Look how Thoss carries the weight of Alaska at times.
Junmar is almost a done project. All he needs is to learn the tricks which would really make him the dominant big man that he will eventually become.
Greg, with all the talent available in the SMC group, should be able to determine his role and make the Barangay a happy place again. He did bring several championship trophies to the UV Green Lancers and later, the Ateneo Blue Eagles. Greg is therefore one player who can make it happen for his team.
Just as an aside, among the national dailies, only the Manila Bulletin prominently mentioned that Slaughter began his career with the Green Lancers and when transplanted to the Blue Eagles, he was already honed as a lethal weapon of destruction.
I now understand why, before Junmar Fajardo went to town, very little notice and appreciation was given to him. As I have repeatedly mentioned in this column, Imperial Manila, like in anything else, still has the attitude that basketball is played only in Manila.
Are the likes of Lauro Mumar, Ildefonso Señas, Alfonso Marquez, Elmer Cabahug, Ramon Fernandez, Alberto Guidaben, Boboy Ravanes, Manny Paner, Estoy Estrada, Julian Macoy, Arnulfo Tuadles, Yoyong Martirez, Willy Generalao, Dondon Hontiveros, Roger Yap, John Ferriols– just a few of the names of basketeers who earned their spurs in Cebu and made the face of Philippine basketball change—not enough proof of the quality of basketball here?
Anyway, we have been able to do our own thing without any help from the retooled BSP. Let us continue what we do as I believe, we are doing it right.
Hopefully, all the three games on opening day will be shown, even on a delayed basis.
I am not going to miss however, the Ginebra-San Mig game where I will be rooting for the successful debut of Greg Slaughter.