Marcial and Baldwin: A Tale of Two Perspectives

The recent controversy that stemmed from Gilas project director Tab Baldwin's statement on the PBA's quality of officiating and how the league is being run has rankled PBA Commissioner Willie Marcial. The Commissioner has threatened to impose sanctions on the assistant head coach of the Talk 'N Text KaTropa for coming up with such statements that are detrimental to the league. 

Photos courtesy of ABS-CBN Sports

Initial Thoughts

1) I felt Marcial could have taken this remark constructively and move forward. It's an opinion coming from an international-caliber coach who has his own observations. While he may have criticized the league, it wasn't derogatory but more like an avenue for improvement.

2) I don't understand what Marcial was referring to when he said Baldwin could've gone to Ricky Vargas or Bong Ravena or Gabby Cui to air his concerns, while he could have done the same thing himself - going to Vargas to discuss what Baldwin said. It's more prudent on his part as Commissioner instead of threatening him with a penalty through media.

Manotoc vs. Jacobs

In the 1984 2nd All Filipino Conference, then Deputy Commissioner Tommy Manotoc had a similar issue against American coach Ron Jacobs but knew how to handle him. When Jacobs acted in protest over the bad officiating in their 1984 Finals KO game against Beer Hausen which NCC lost, relegating them to a 3rd place battle vs. Tanduay, Jacobs hardly gave playing time to naturalized players Still, Moore and Engelland and got clobbered by the Esquires in the first two games by an average of 23 points, including a game that saw Denis Abbatuan score 51 points. Prior to Game 3, Manotoc spoke with Jacobs and warned him of a penalty, if he kept this up. In Game 3, Jacobs fielded his best players, with Engelland scoring 60 points, that resulted to NCC routing Tanduay, 148-110. No penalties given, no unnecessary threats, and you can even say Ron committed the "graver sin." But Manotoc was a secured man and knew how to handle such egos. In the end, both men were able to prove their respective points - Manotoc being a firm but fair Deputy Commissioner while Jacobs displaying his wisdom by winning the 1986 ABC title. 

Suffice to add that Jacobs was a far more difficult "nut to crack" because his boss was Danding Cojuangco. I really don't care about the opinion of the other personalities (Alfrancis Chua, Yeng Guiao, Louie Alas) because they can agree or dissent, a personal opinion given, and that's fine by me. I'm more focused on Marcial since he's the Commissioner and whatever he says is representative of the league. Why didn't Marcial just summon Baldwin in his office quietly to discuss his concerns? Why didn't he just go to Ricky Vargas and handle things more professionally? Even more, why did Marcial not get involved and give penalties to Wells, Tubid, Nabong and Santos of SMB in a melee in front of fans during practice and merely allowed SMB management to impose the said penalties?

Did Marcial speak out because Alfrancis Chua also has spoken out against Baldwin? That goes without saying. For me though, whether Baldwin was right or wrong doesn't matter - he expressed an opinion. Whether that was derogatory, ill-intended, and malicious is something that can only be judged when Marcial hears his side. At this point, Marcial has also expressed his opinion on what to do with Baldwin - the problem is that he's the Commissioner and now, he's obligated to follow through what he said. Marcial could have merely summoned him sans fanfare, and then release a statement when an official verdict is given. If it means a fine or a suspension, so be it. But you don't express an opinion on media without hearing the side of the other person. It's just unbecoming from a league Commissioner, especially since he contradicted himself, doing exactly the same thing that he's accusing Tab of.

Root Cause

The source of the problem is that the personalities involved are coming from different perspectives. And while I see the logic from both sides, it's difficult to reconcile both as their objectives are far apart from each other.

Marcial is looking at it from the angle of entertainment and business. He wants the PBA to be a lucrative endeavor to ensure that club participation remains active and that the PBA remains a viable vehicle among present and future franchises as a marketing tool. To do so, you would need to have fans cheering for the local talents and their playing time not taken away by the imports, which is really logical because the lifeblood of the PBA is anchored on two factors: the franchises and the fans. Not long-term but not exactly myopic. You won't find in the PBA Constitution anything that involves participation in the national team or ensuring continuous basketball development in the country.

On the other hand, Tab's viewpoint is player development. He wants the PHL to be a basketball great internationally. He feels that the PBA, being the top basketball league in the country, has become a detriment towards progress as its style of play is fundamentally flawed for the international game. He feels that the PBA should play a major role in the national basketball landscape as they do have the best players in the league. And that if the PBA changes this approach, it can be a springboard towards greater international success, parallel to the objectives of the SBP.

Photo c/o Dugout Philippines

The thing is, with both groups' objectives not parallel with each other, there will never ever be a meeting of minds. All we'll have are compromises which has what happened for the past 30 years and it has never worked. One party just can't give way to the other without violating the very objectives of their respective groups. 

The PBA has allowed its players to suit up for the national team since "open basketball" came about in 1990. So far, no national team has replicated the success of the last national team that won the FIBA-Asia tournament (then called the Asian Basketball Confederation) - the 1986 team of Jacobs. Back then, we kept on saying we're the best in basketball in this region but the pro league's existence has prevented us to prove this to our rivals. Yet, our best finish was in 2013 when we won a silver medal at home and two years after in Changsha, as well as a silver medal placing as well in the 1990 Beijing Asian Games. That only proves that we're not Asia's best anymore.

Curiously, the last team that won the FIBA-Asia title did not have access to the players in the pros. They were culled from a bunch of collegiate players and reinforced by two naturalized players. Their secret was their ability to stay together as a unit for almost 5 years, expose themselves in the international competitions, while ensuring they kept in shape by participating as a guest team in the PBA. 

 The victorious 1986 national basketball team in the ABC

Gilas 1.0 under Coach Rajko Toroman

Where To?

Because of the fundamental differences of the PBA and the SBP, the only resolution really is to rely less on the PBA, as what Baldwin has previously declared. It has been done before - first, by Cojuangco's program that started as early as 1980 when he was project director for the sport, and second, in 2009 when Gilas 1.0 was put up by PBA former Commissioner and former SBP Project Director Noli Eala. 

And the timing is ideal - it's ripe for the picking. With up and coming talents like Kai Sotto, AJ Edu, Dalph Panopio, Thirdy Ravena, Kobe Paras, Juan Gomez De Liano, Dwight Ramos, CJ Cansino, Dave Ildefonso, Rhenz Abando, among the top collegiate players today, the pool is deep enough to come up with a young, yet formidable, national team for the future. Add Jordan Clarkson in the mix and you have a potent national lineup that has the chance to beat any national team that the PBA can form in the future. 

Fans would recall how the 1985 national team beat a PBA All-Star team reinforced by Francois Wise in 1985 in a benefit game for Mike Bilbao, who suffered a near fatal car accident along Alabang-Zapote Road in Muntinlupa. Similarly, Gilas 1.0 overpowered the Powerade national team of Guiao that played in Tianjin, China for the 2009 FIBA-Asia tourney. This scenario isn't unlikely again. It's not a matter of putting up a basketball team with the best players, but putting up the best basketball team. NCC and GIlas 1.0 proved that before. It can be replicated.

 The 1985 Reinforced Conference champions

Photo courtesy of GMA Network

Stumbling Block

Of course, the PBA may end up nipping all these in the bud. Note that a recent rule by the league threatening to ban eligible players who won't join the draft is actually counter to any future plans of the SBP. If an amateur player is already eligible to join the draft but won't because he has to play for Gilas or the 3x3, it takes away his right to earn a living in the future once he declares himself ready for the pros. The SBP would now find itself in a tight situation where young players, for fear of being banned by the PBA, would eventually leave the national pool. I find it appalling that the country's blueprint to international basketball success is not anymore being blocked by the FIBA but by the PBA itself.

This would force the hand of the SBP now to cough up a little more than it should when giving allowances to the young players to stay in the amateur ranks. And given the timeline of Baldwin where 2023 would mean qualifying in the second round and 2027 for the medal rounds in the World Cup, the roadmap is long-term and would be very costly.

Again, this is because it runs counter to the PBA's own goals. Preventing top amateur players from joining the league would mean only the second-tier talents ending up in the draft. You can only imagine how the franchises are salivating for the opportunity to have the likes of Paras, Ravena, De Liano, Ramos, etc. in their rosters.

Future national team mainstays Kobe Paras and Thirdy Ravena

Win-Win Situation

There's a win-win proposition here, although I don't know if the PBA is amenable to such. If they don't want to remove the threat of the ban, then at least, exempt those players who were selected as part of the national pool (including 3x3). If a player wants to stay in the pool until 2027, then so be it. Threatening to ban players not joining the PBA when they're eligible is a draconian measure, especially considering the PBA has no relationship with any amateur player, and hence, may be questioned in court as a form of curtailment of human rights.

Second, allow the national team to play in PBA conferences to keep them competitive and in game shape. Adjust to the FIBA rules when the national team is participating, if only to ensure that the team won't have to adjust every single time. Make the calls fair and objective without partiality to any PBA team.

Third, when the national team plays in the PBA, make sure this happens on import-laced conferences. There's nothing more embarrassing than an all local PBA ballclub losing to an all-amateur team just like what happened twice in the past. Moreso, if they end up winning a PBA title, not unlike what NCC did in the 1985 Reinforced Conference when it  swept and annihilated  the Manila Beer Brewmasters in what is regarded as the most lopsided Finals ever, losing by an average of 25.5 per game.

In return, imagine the benefits the PBA will receive once those in the pool finally opt to turn pro. Not only will they be household names already, their talent stock would have risen considerably that they would be dominating the league in the next 5 years or so. Again, this is not without precedent. When the NCC program folded up, the PBA benefited when Hector Calma, Samboy Lim, Allan Caidic, Yves Dignadice, Pido Jarencio, Elmer Reyes, Franz Pumaren, etc. joined the league in 1986 and 1987. There was a resurgence in the interest in the pro league brought about by these young men. Similarly, in the 2011 draft, the Gilas 1.0 players also came in, ushering another new generation of players. Guys like Marcio Lassiter, JVee Casio, Chris Lutz, Mark Barroca, and Chris Tiu came aboard and the league once more ended up as the primary beneficiary. 

Similarly, Marcial and company would not have to worry about schedule disruption, player adjustment, long seasons for players, etc., anymore. The PBA can go on with what they feel is best for them - 3 conferences, preferred number of imports, among others. 

In the end, this won't just be a compromise, but a win-win deal for both as they fulfill their respective organization's mission statements.