CHICAGO — After NLEX beat NorthPort in overtime, 120-115, last Dec. 10, Road Warriors head coach Yeng Guiao was so excited that he committed to a long-term relationship with team import KJ McDaniels.
"He is our import now and he is going to be our import at the end of the conference. That shows how much we trust him."
To the untrained ears that sounded only innocently, like a head coach imprisoned by the moment and slobbering praise over a 6-foot-6 beast who is currently leading NLEX to a league-best 4-0 record while averaging 33.5 points, 11.7 rebounds and 4.2 assists per.
But Yeng's word's carried more weight and significance than that.
He basically guaranteed McDaniels of employment until at least the end of February, or early March next year if some playoff series go to seven games.
And that's a big deal considering that imports' contracts are usually not guaranteed beyond one month. And their employment clock starts as soon as they land in Manila.
Unlike McDaniels, though, several imports do not have the same iron-clad security of tenure.
In fact, Jaylen Bond of Blackwater has already been told that he will be replaced if Shawn Glover can acquire a visa.
So who else is on the hot seat?
Apparently, Brandon Brown of San Miguel Beer is.
Desperate Beermen looking for an upgrade
ACCORDING to sources, the Beermen has reached out to former NBA player, Orlando Johnson, who is on stand-by in the event SMC decides to pull the switch.
Brown is actually killing it this conference, averaging 23.5 points, 13.2 rebounds and 5 assists per. But San Miguel only has a pedestrian 2-2 record, which is unacceptable given that their team budget is comparable to the economy of a third world country.
I don't think SMC sports director Alfranchis Chua is writing all these zeroes on people's paychecks only to get back an average performance on his investment.
No disrespect to Brown but Johnson is an upgrade.
A veteran of 103 NBA games, the 6-foot-5, 220-pound Johnson has an established international career that saw him play for Brisbane of the NBL in the 2020-2021 season.
In his 12-game stint with Ginebra in 2015, the 32-year old averaged 33.7 points and 11.3 rebounds.
Since winning the Commissioner's Cup in 2019, San Miguel hasn't won a title in the past three conferences. In their Grand Slam world, that's called a drought.
And it's likely not going to end with McDaniels at NLEX, Justin Brownlee at Ginebra, and Tony Bishop at Meralco.
Hence, the desperation and the alleged engagement with Orlando Johnson.
No Moore. No Moore.
McKenzie Moore had 13 points against Alaska and four against Meralco.
McKenzie Moore is reportedly on his way out of TNT, multiple sources told me,
This impending exit, though, is injury-related, not due to lack of skill or talent.
Plagued by what TNT head coach Chot Reyes described as "jumper's knees," a source told me that "McKenzie cannot move at all. His knee is really bad. Not much you can do when you are hurt."
TNT can hope for Moore's knees to get better but champions and championship aspirations wait for no one. And that is why a replacement is forthcoming.
Even the PBA itself seems to think Moore is a goner. In the league's official website, Moore's stats profile is littered with zeroes, empty as a politician's promise. And his thumbnail photo yields nothing more than the silhouette of an invisible man.
Fortunately for the Tropang Giga, they don't play until Jan. 6 next year, an 11-day respite that should allow time for the replacement import to clear IATF protocols and get in some practice runs.
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