Playoff gang’s all here
Now that the PBA Commissioner’s Cup semifinals cast is complete, the time has come for some serious reevaluation of whether or not a team’s import is capable of leading the charge all the way to the throne. Under PBA rules, a reinforcement may be brought in at any time, even for Game 7 in the Finals, for as long as he’s not from another team in the conference, he’s not been active in the league for a year and he’s not reactivated a second time if an original import.
Magnolia, San Miguel Beer, Barangay Ginebra and Phoenix are in the Final Four. At the moment, nobody’s complaining about imports. Phoenix’ Johnathan Williams took a bit of flak for his poor foul shooting in the Super LPG Fuel Masters’ triple OT nine-point loss to Meralco in Game 1 of the quarters, missing 10 of 19. But coach Jamike Jarin is sold on J3 who’s averaging 26.3 points, 16.3 rebounds, 5.2 assists and 45.2 minutes an outing. It’s not often that a player is shooting at a higher clip from the floor than from the line but J3 is hitting 59.2 percent from the field and 56.2 percent from the stripe. Still, he’s a gem and Jarin will live or die with J3.
Magnolia’s Tyler Bey is averaging 28.8 points, 14 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 39.9 minutes while San Miguel’s Bennie Boatwright is compiling 40.5 points, 12.5 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 42.5 minutes a game. Ginebra’s Tony Bishop is averaging 23.6 points, 12.6 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 42.4 minutes. While the four imports are secure in their jobs, there’s no telling what could happen as the playoffs move forward. You can’t discount injuries or a team could lose momentum and look for a fresh import.
The semis matchups are intriguing. Magnolia beat Phoenix, 107-92, in the elims but the loss sparked the Fuel Masters’ six game win streak. Phoenix is on a mission as the only “independent” in the semis but defeating the Chicken Timplados Hotshots in a best-offive series seems to be a stretch. San Miguel Beer has won six in a row and posted an 8-3 record in the elims despite JuneMar Fajardo missing six games, Terrence Romeo four, Jericho Cruz two, Jeron Teng eight, Simon Enciso seven, Kyt Jimenez nine and Vic Manuel 11. That’s how deep San Miguel is. But Ginebra is also on a tear, winning its last five although it lost to San Miguel, 95-82, in the prelims. San Miguel’s advantage is depth and in a series that could go the distance, that’s major. Maverick Ahanmisi’s addition was timely for Ginebra and if Christian Standhardinger, Scottie Thompson, Jamie Malonzo, Japeth Aguilar, Stanley Pringle and Bishop are in synch, it won’t be easy for San Miguel.