MANILA: This corner has been very critical of Mahindra ever since it entered the PBA three seasons ago, from signing Manny Pacquiao as playing head coach to trading away Troy Rosario and its willingness — or lack of it — in maintaining a competitive team.

We have covered the PBA long enough to see what is wrong with something when it crops up, so when Mahindra made questionable — even strange — trades in the off-season and let go of its core, there was certainly something wrong there somewhere.

After playing two games to start its third season in Asia’s pioneering professional league, Mahindra has lost by a combined margin of 44 points, even trailing Rain or Shine by an embarrassing 49 points on Wednesday night.

From being the surprise package of the last Governors’ Cup where James White took them all the way to the playoffs as the KIA Enforcers, this Mahindra squad will head nowhere after all of this is said and done.

No offense to the little-known players who are trying their best.

Mahindra set itself up to fail, and fail big time, in the pre-season after dealing away Aldrech Ramos, KG Canaleta and up-and-coming big man Bradwyn Guinto to different teams. What made management do that is up for all of us to find out, but in doing so, the team basically did not think of this season and has no plans of contending at all.

Even Chris Gavina, the man listed as Pacquiao’s assistant, said in one website report that he was baffled at what management was doing as he was left to form a nucleus at the last minute with the departure of Ramos and Co.

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Obviously, the Office of the Commissioner will not take this sitting down.

After those two lopsided losses, a source told Arab News on Thursday afternoon that commissioner Chito Narvasa has asked Mahindra management to furnish his office a copy of the salaries its players are receiving.

Narvasa could be trying to trace the problem of lack of Mahindra’s competitiveness to the total amount of money it is spending for its players, because obviously, a big payroll should equal a better team.

There have been reports — though unconfirmed — that Mahindra let go of Ramos and Co. because of the formidable salaries they were asking in renewing contracts with the team and that management settled for those with lesser names and lesser pay.

While there is a maximum salary cap which teams are required to follow, there is also a minimum that all teams must comply with — and this has never been an issue in the past, until now, if ever.

The minimum individual cap for players is P50,000 a month, or P600,000 a year, an annual pay which a lot of the league’s superstars make in just over a month’s work.

Arab News gathered from a very reliable source that one player Mahindra traded away in the off-season to one powerhouse and well-financed team made just P55,000 a month in his first two years with the team.

The successful teams in the league, and we need not mention them, take care of their players, who in turn take care of their respective mother teams in return.

So what message is Mahindra sending across by trading away Ramos and Co.?

The Office of the Commissioner is also partly to blame if Mahindra continues with this tailspin.

Narvasa was the one who approved those trades and he should have seen what could happen to Mahindra with such a weakened lineup.

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In trying to see something positive in all of this, the players who managed to crack the Mahindra lineup — and play in the PBA —can use this opportunity to shine and create careers for themselves.

Guys like Rey Guevarra, acquired in a trade from Meralco, Josan Nimes, Jeckster Apinan and Philip Paniamogan, to name a few, now have the stage to strut their stuff and show that they belong in this league.

Gary David was pulled out of semi-retirement and will be looked upon to provide a huge chunk of the scoring for the Floodbusters. But is he up to it, at 38 years young?

And after two blowout losses and with a lot more of the same certain to come with Mahindra still to face the league’s powerhouses, how can one motivate his players to continue giving it their best?

Gavina certainly has his work cut out for him.

This corner is just wondering where Pacquiao is in all of this.

Mahindra can certainly use the inspiration he provides.