Inside the UP ‘exodus’

JUST a few weeks ago, the University of the Philippines (UP) was the envy of all college basketball teams because of their recruiting prowess. They just recruited Rey Remogat, a legitimate Mythical Five awardee in UAAP Season 86.

This was the cherry on top of the sundae, which was UP’s continuous haul from last season. But if you keep recruiting, there is bound to be a logjam. There is a finite number of slots in a basketball team, even in the UAAP, where there seems to be no semblance of regulation. An even more limited resource: playing time.

Casting a wide net

How did UP end up with a ton of talent? Well, it’s normal for schools to cast a wide net. You can’t target three players if you have three graduating players. There are no guarantees of success until you sign the dotted line, as UP would know with the “LipatBahay” saga.

You need to recruit multiple prospects at every position since you never really know who will stay. That’s the reality of college now, students transfer. You will get some, you will lose some, and the movement is always fluid. Then, there are injuries to consider. The only way your well won’t dry out and ensure the talent flow is to keep pouring.

All schools recruit a lot. They have a ton of scouts being deployed anywhere the budget can take them. It can reach the deep ends of Mindanao to the Americas and Europe, since Filipinos are everywhere. They cannot just wait for their juniors to graduate since the other teams are recruiting all over the world.

Side note: A decade or so ago, the UP Fighting Maroons were the college choice of players from powerhouse junior programs (Ateneo, La Salle), but those who could not get a seniors slot. Players like Mikee Reyes and Mike Gamboa went to UP likely because they may have been too small for La Salle and Ateneo seniors Team A. Slightly different for Noah Webb, since La Salle was just too stacked in his era.

UP just had a phenomenal streak where they hit most of their targets. But when you have an overload of recruits, you have to determine the quality players from your quantity. It may cause some heartaches, and many of the coaching staff’s promises while recruiting will likely not be fulfilled.

Harsh realities

I can’t overstate it. There are only 40 minutes in a basketball game, and you can only field five players at a time. That does not change no matter how talented your team is. Coach Goldwin Monteverde had real visions for each player that he recruited, but the limits of playing time manifested.

Another major factor that affects playing time is that the main mandate of the coach is to win games. It is not to please the recruits or ensure they have equal court exposure. In the NBA or PBA, they draft, not recruit. And even if they do, it’s the front office, not the coach. It is tough for college coaches to bench the players they recruited, since that’s probably not what was promised.

However, a coach needs to win, and with a roster like the Fighting Maroons (or the Green Archers for that matter), you don’t get too many chances. One main reason for Luis Pablo’s return to La Salle is that Monteverde preferred a faster lineup. Game strategy called for guys like Francis Lopez, Aldous Torculas and Mark Gil Belmonte to play stretch four. That left Pablo and Seven Gagate outside the rotation.

Swim to survive

The counterpoint here is that Pablo and other big men should adjust to the game. They should develop their fluidity and have a reliable jump shot at least. It would be self-defeating if they just leave UP in favor of a school that would have them as their main big options instead of developing their game.

To their credit, the UP brass has respected the decisions of players to leave Diliman. Is it an admission that they bit off more than they can chew? More on the college recruitment game next.