A WEEK ago, prospective future PBA team owner Jackson Chua of Starhorse Basilan bared the gentleman’s agreement he had with Terrafirma management about keeping the team intact until the transfer of ownership is finalized.
It’s a nice little proclamation. At least through his words, it shows his interest in forming their own team based on whatever asset the Dyip has left.
READ: Starhorse Basilan owner holding on to Terrafirma 'no more trades' promise
It also puts the management of Terrafirma, and team governor Mr. Bobby Rosales, on the spot as the last thing Starhose wants to happen – if they’re serious about competing in the PBA – is a firesale of its player before the actual franchise sale happened.
Nothing new
We’ve seen it in the past. Take Sta. Lucia for example, who wasn’t a ‘farm team’ by any means but still let go of its then young one-two punch of PBA MVP Kelly WIlliams and Ryan Reyes to Talk ‘N Text before getting bought out by Meralco.
They also traded away key cogs like veteran Dennis Espino to Coca Cola and then young guard Denok Miranda to San Miguel.
Now imagine if Meralco has kept that Sta. Lucia core. Maybe it won’t have to wait for 14 years to get its first PBA title.
But that’s not an isolated incident. Same can be said about the Powerade franchise which traded away Marcio Lassiter and JV Casio before ownership was transferred to the GlobalPort franchise.
Barako Bull also did it, but did so through their draft picks before eventually getting sold to Phoenix Petroleum.
So far, both franchises have yet to taste success in the PBA and that’s one thing that Starhorse doesn’t want to go through as it traverses a new line entering Asia’s oldest pay-for-play league.
Where do they go from here?
While Terrafirma is not boasting of an MVP like Williams and a promising young guard like Reyes back then, the Dyip - or what's left of it - still has a collection of pretty good young players in their roster.
Louie Sangalang has emerged as their best scoring local this conference with 12.1 points (on 58 percent shooting), while Mark Nonoy has shown flashes of brilliance at the point guard position with a 33-point outing in their lone win in the conference - an upset over TNT.
Kemark Carino, while he hasn’t really reached his potential on the offensive end yet, is still a young 6’8 defensive anchor who can change looks inside the paint. Paolo Hernandez, Brent Paraiso and Aljun Melecio are all pretty solid young rotation guys as well.
Holding on to these young players should be a priority.
Keeping the draft pick is of utmost importance
But the most important thing for Starhorse? If Terrafirma keeps its draft pick for next year’s PBA draft.
While all those players mentioned above are solid players, they’re not gonna be the cornerstone of this franchise – though they need not fret cause that cornerstone could come from the Season 50 PBA draft.
While there’s still no word as to who’s gonna be in this class, there are definite game changers who could prospectively join the draft.
For one, UP’s Quentin Millora-Brown could potentially be the biggest name out there who could enter the draft. A 6’10 big who knows how to finish, has a soft touch around the rim and has no qualms on doing the dirty job is cornerstone material.
With reportedly no offers from Korea or Japan yet, teams will be salivating over the prospect of getting hold of a talent like Rhenz Abando – someone who’ll not only be productive on the court, but has a really solid following outside of it mainly because of his high flying ways.
Make no mistake, if and when Abando enters the league – he’s gonna be one of the most popular players in the PBA, giving Starhorse a pretty good following in its first salvo in the league.
With only a combined two wins so far in the 49th season of the PBA, the Dyip are certainly the frontrunners to get the top overall pick, and it’s one thing Mr. Chua should be hellbent on keeping.
What to do with the veterans?
Vic Manuel has taken his talents to the MPBL, leaving Terrence Romeo and Stanley Pringle as two big name vets remaining on this team.
Pringle has been a consummate professional as after being traded by Ginebra before this 49th season, he’s shown up and played for the Dyip to the best of his abilities despite being discarded by the most popular team in the league while his running partner in Christian Standhardinger opted to retire instead.
Romeo has been saddled with injuries since being traded by San Miguel alongside Manuel for Juami Tiongson and Andreas Cahilig – and while he hasn’t shown his old self with the Dyip, he’s only turning 33 and he’s still a pull among fans.
I say keep both players, if not for the name recall, but as a veteran presence who’s played with some of the best teams in the league and has won many championships in between them.
I’ll only be moving these players for solid, younger role players or a package for a late first, but if that’s not available then they should be keeping this.
Should they even consider trading?
It’s no surprise that Terrafirma has been the subject of trade talks long before this franchise sale ever surfaced.
Mo Tautuaa has been a name linked to this team, supposedly for Sangalang and Carino, and while Mo’s still solid that’s not a path a new team should be treading.
Trades should only happen if they’re getting a legitimate game changer in return. Think Mikey Williams or whoever the hell Gov. Delta Pineda doesn’t want in the core of his promising Converge squad with the FiberXers having shown cracks within the team following the departure of several key cogs in the bench over the past month.
But their highest draft pick, unless it’s a June Mar Fajardo or a Scottie Thompson they’re getting in return, should be untouchable especially if Starhorse wants to build an identity of their own choosing.
It’s not going to be an easy path for Starhorse, especially given the limited assets they’ll be receiving from Terrafirma, but a fresh start with limited assets is better than nothing at all.
All in all, this sale will certainly be big for the league as it coincides with the rise of independent teams Converge and Rain or Shine, and if Starhorse plays its cards right – then it could be joining those fighting independent squads sooner rather than later.
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