MANILA, 3 May — If we should win against South Korea in the coming Pusan Asian Games, it would be an "upset" of sorts.
That is how Basketball Association of the Philippines (BAP) Secretary-General Graham Lim sees the Philippines’ chances when ranged against the South Koreans in the quadrennial games in South Korea.
Lim admitted, though, that the South Koreans — aside from enjoying the luxury of a built-in homecourt advantage — are formidable, indeed, but they are still "beatable".
He noted the Fil-foreigners-backed national team’s ambitious bid of reclaiming the gold in Pusan is "achievable" despite the gigantic task of beating the defending champions China — and, of course, surviving against the South Koreans.
It has long been a chronic obsession for the Filipinos to win back the Asian basketball gold the country last won in 1962 in Jakarta, Indonesia.
The Philippines won the inaugural edition of the games in 1951 in New Delhi, India. It also reigned supreme in 1954 in Manila and in 1958 in Tokyo, Japan.
But Lim warned that unless the national team is armed with the proper international exposure in the months leading to the games, they would find it difficult to adjust to playing conditions in Pusan in September.
Lim said the program laid out by Uichico and his predecessor Ron Jacobs is sound but wonders if somehow, the Jones Cup could be included in the schedule.
The national team has been invited to play at the Jones Cup in Taipei on July 13-24. Expected to play in the tournament are teams from Japan and Korea although it’s not certain if their national senior teams will be sent.
"Our stint in the Jones Cup can help us a lot," said Lim. "From there, we could somehow gauge our preparedness in Pusan. It’s not a matter of winning or losing but playing together for the country. Also, it will test us against foreign teams using international rules."
But Uichico had already ruled out playing in the Jones Cup even as he realized the importance of international exposure.
"There won’t be much competition in the Jones Cup because junior teams are usually sent to play there," said Uichico, "besides, it’s too early in the calendar. We could give ourselves a false sense of security if we win the championship by beating junior teams. Of course, we need the international exposure, but we need tough competition."
Lim said while China is highly favored to win its fifth straight crown in Pusan, he’s not discounting the possibility of a Philippine victory, say, in the form of an upset.
"The Chinese are much taller than us, but there’s such a thing as an upset," he said. "In basketball, anything can happen. We have good players and if we are well-prepared, we can beat any team in Asia.
The "spies" Uichico had sent abroad can attest to the fact that South Korea will be armed, as usual, with its dreaded outside artillery and a vastly improved motion game.
And, according to Uichico’s moles, if the games would be held today, then it would be impossible for the Philippines to beat them.
The Philippine team’s chief scout, Binky Favis, noted that the Koreans were "formidable" to beat, indeed.
"The Koreans now also play American basketball. They’ve been trying very hard to perfect the skills of doing screens, pick and roll, among others, but they maintain their outside shooting. That’s why they become even more fearsome," said Favis, who came back home after his 17-day scouting mission in South Korea. "They are so good. We have to raise the level of our game notches higher to beat them."
Favis admitted that the Koreans would pose a big problem to the Filipinos on their hometurf.
Together with national assistant coach Eric Altamirano, they watched several games in the Korean pro league and were able to take footages of a number of players who are most likely to compose the Korean national team.
Favis was impressed with the Korean players and he made special mention of American-trained behemoth Seo Jang Hoon who has actually made good account of himself in the 1998 Asiad in Bangkok.
The 6-foot-10 Seo dwarfed the Philippines’ pair of 6-foot-9 slotmen, Marlou Aquino and Andy Seigle, in their personal duels, scoring 26 points, as the Koreans humbled the RP Centennial Team, 103-83, in Bangkok.
Even Favis did not discount the possibility of the Philippines "upsetting" the Koreans, but said "our national team has to improve immensely."
Favis and Altamirano toured the Korean Basketball League (KBL) pro circuit to visualize what to expect from the Koreans in Pusan.
They came back home carrying with them 20 tapes of KBL games and reams of scouting reports.
"The Koreans are deep in every position," Altamirano noted. "They will be tough to beat, pound for pound. They’re quick. They’re deadly. They’re accurate passers. They like to penetrate and kick out.
They also like to work the ball inside to their big men who can post up. But it’s not impossible to beat them. We’ll need a sound gameplan to win. If we can take them away from their perimeter game, we have a chance."
Altamirano said defense will be a key to beating the South Koreans. That means drills on individual defense, switching, help-and-recover, and sprinting back to prevent transition baskets.
The Korean squad, according to Altamirano, is still being formed.
"The Koreans knew we were in town to scout," said Altamirano. "They’re not scared of us. They’re not intimidated. They’re not insecure. They’re confident of their chances against us. They even helped us get tickets for games and tapes."
South Korea has won two Asian Games titles in basketball so far, in 1970 in Bangkok and in 1982 in New Delhi.
Although no tournaments are slated so far for the Philippine team against possible Asiad opponents, scouting missions have already been sent abroad. Uichico vowed to intensify the Philippines’ scouting mission abroad.
He is following former national mentor Jacobs’ philosophy to the letter, that is to scout the players individually in the belief that if one knows how the team’s top guns move, anticipating the style of play would be easier.
Uichico has tasked American coach Paul Howard, a good friend of Jacobs, to help the Philippines in scouting China and Lebanon in their stints in the world championship in Indianapolis, which will run from August to September.
In February, Ginebra mentor and national assistant coach Allan Caidic and Favis were sent to scout potential national players in the Japan Professional League.
Caidic reported the Philippine team aspirants remain far from being beaten by the Japanese team in Pusan.
The Filipino "moles" came back home carrying with them a vital report on the Japanese’s preparations for the Games where they are also considered as hot title contenders.
They had first-hand accounts of how the Japanese play, and immediately, their impression was that the Philippines’ brand of basketball is still better than the Japanese’s.
They watched four games of the semifinal round of the Japan Basketball League and videotaped actions of the top stars of the league who could well comprise the Japanese team.
Caidic said they spotted among others old Japanese team mainstays Kenichi Sako, Takehiko Orimo and Mekaeru Takahashi — or Michael Dorsey — and new sensation Japanese naturalized Eric McArthur.
Likewise, scouts will keep a watchful eye on Lebanon, particularly would-be national players of Lebanon, considered to be an emerging power in the region.
Lebanon is also reportedly recruiting three Lebanese-American to beef up its lineup.
Lebanon finished behind perennial champion China in the ABC with a team backstopped by two Lebanese-Americans, Joseph William Vogel and Richard Hallet.
Vogel is a 6-foot-11, 245-pound center who played for Lebanon during the 1999 McDonalds Championships won by the San Antonio Spurs of the National Basketball Association (NBA).
However, it is still unclear if the two are the same reinforcements Lebanon is pursuing to boost its chances of winning the title in Pusan.
In Kuala Lumpur, most of the national team players by different countries, particularly China, other Middle East countries, are expected to see action in the ABC Champions Cup in May, while in Taipei, the Jones Cup is scheduled in June.
Uichico expects to spot the Arab teams in Malaysia and some other teams in Taipei.
But the national mentor said monitoring the former Russian states is what the coaching staff has a hard time doing.
Uichico’s wariness for the former Russian states lies in the fact that Kazakhstan nearly pulled off a pair of upsets against the Philippines in the 1998 Asiad, with the Centennial Team barely escaping for a third-placed finish.
China and South Korea, the traditional pre-tournament favorites, have usually taken the top two slots in the quadrennial games, but Japan, the Philippines, the former Russian states and Middle Eastern countries are expected to offer stiffer opposition this time around.
Last week, Uichico, a four-time PBA champion coach, named the 15 players from the country’s premier league who would form the national team.
Making up the Philippine team are eight Fil-foreign players and seven home-grown talents as they pursue the country’s bid to reclaim the Asian basketball gold. Leading the list are Andy Seigle, Dennis Espino, Olsen Racela and Kenneth Duremdes, all members of the Centennial Team that won the bronze in the 1998 Bangkok Asian Games.
Also named to the magic 15 were Chris Jackson, Asi Taulava, Jeffrey Cariaso, Rudy Hatfield, Danny Ildefonso, Danny Seigle, Dondon Hontiveros, Eric Menk, Mick Pennisi, Boyet Fernandez and Noy Castillo.
All 15 will go to Pusan, but once there, three will be relegated as practice players. The final 12-man lineup for the national team will be picked from the list before the quadrennial games start.
"This is the best team that can give the Philippines the best shot possible to win the Asian Games gold," said Uichico.
This will be the fourth time since the open basketball was introduced in 1990 that the PBA will be sending a selection to the Asian Games.
Since the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) agreed to take responsibility in forming the national team to the Asian Games in 1990, the country’s best achievement so far was a silver medal in Beijing in the same year. It was Robert "Sonny" Jaworski, now a senator, who coached that All-Star team to the silver medal behind powerhouse China.
The Centennial Team, coached by Tim Cone, finished third in Bangkok in 1998. In the Hiroshima edition of the games in 1994, the Norman Black-mentored Philippine team finished fourth.
The multi-titled Uichico, who took over the coaching job after American Ron Jacobs suffered a stroke last year, vowed his wards will go out fighting.
"I’m not promising that this team will win the gold medal. But I can guarantee to everybody that these players will go out fighting up to the last second no matter what," said Uichico who will be seeking to end four decades of title drought for the Philippines in the games.
Uichico described his team as relatively small but thought "this can match up with any team in the Asiad and can be the team that can give the country the best shot possible at winning the Asiad gold medal."
As expected, the team had a big Fil-foreign flavor with Taulava, Menk, Pennisi, Hatfield, Jackson, Castillo and the Seigle brothers in it.
The many-time national player said he decided to go for a balanced line-up that will have the best chance of beating the opposition.
He picked just five legitimate big men in Taulava, Menk, Ildefonso, Espino and Andy Seigle and blended it with perimeter gunners like Duremdes, Castillo and Hontiveros.
"If we go big, it’s useless against the Chinese because they are more mobile. We’ll still be mismatched. It will also be a disadvantage against small and quick teams like Korea," he pointed out. "Our strength, I believe, is our quickness. If you will notice, the list is made up of eight small ones and seven big ones. The small ones are dominant. The idea is how to best match up with the opposition. So our best shot is to form a balanced team that is neither small nor big but has a lot of offensive threats. That’s why we opted to go small."
The squad will see action in the Commissioner’s Cup, unfolding on June 16, for its final tune-up before the Asiad. Conspicuously missing in the list are 1994 and 1998 campaigners Marlou Aquino, Johnny Abarrientos and Davonn Harp.
Abarrientos, who has long been a national team standout in his amateur and professional career, and the Fil-Am Harp told Uichico not to include them on the list before it was made public.
Abarrientos backed out because of health reasons. He has long been bothered by knee and ankle injuries in the Governor’s Cup. Harp, one of the most consistent candidates for the national team, cited personal reasons.
Uichico said Harp would have been a practical shoo-in had he not opted to back out at the last minute.
Controversy marked Uichico’s announcement of his Fighting Fifteen after the inclusion of Castillo in the national team. Castillo was not able to join the tryout and did not see action at all for Hapee-RP because he had surgery on his toe and a prolonged rehabilitation in the US.
But Uichico defended his decision to include the 6-foot-2 Castillo, a streak-shooter, who, according to the bench taskmaster, could ably fill his need for a point guard who could easily make the switch to off-guard.
"I believe we need him so I made a decision, whether popular or not," he said, adding Castillo was his "personal choice."
As always, outside shooting is vital in playing against the zone and Castillo isn’t only a fearsome perimeter shooter but also a versatile backcourt operator who can play both guard spots.
