random round-up: 10.13.09

So, it finally took Manny Pangilinan's "divine intervention" to sort out this Japeth Aguilar mess. How messy was it? Well let's just say that practically, Aguilar's rights went from BK to Smart Gilas to BK to Red Bull to Talk N Text then back to Smart Gilas--all in about a month's time.

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Speaking of Japeth, he and Rico Maierhoffer should consider enlisting in the rescue teams for flood victims. They probably won't need rubber boats to reach out to the victims.

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The NBA off-season has been pretty quiet recently, with the only significant news this past week being that of Andre Miller lashing out on his "reserve role." I wouldn't be too happy if I'm Steve Blake.

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Quiet or not though, it's about time we all get ready for the brand new fantasy hoops season that beckons. I'm betting a lot of people are more excited with that than with the actual games themselves.

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Me? I'm also excited with this.

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Apparently, a pro team in Indonesia is parading an import who goes by the name Rensy Bajar. In the inaugural game of the Asean Basketball League, the Indonesians faced the Philippine Patriots. Does that make Bajar the "Un-patriot?"

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Is it just me or does it feel like the current NCAA season has been extended to 82 games? And apparently, they're still not done with the qualification round.

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Over at the other side of the college fence, is this Ateneo team really that strong or are the other teams just a tad weaker? How do you think would they have fared against the champion teams of Cortez-Cardona-Ritualo, Santos-Miranda-Isip, or maybe even against Ateneo's own 2002 squad of Villanueva-Fonacier-Alvarez? Frankly, I think they could beat those, but they probably would not be able to in a best-of-three affair.

at long last

Let me begin by stating how (mostly) bored I am with the current UAAP season. I cannot remember going to these many games and not feeling any thrill --or feeling very little thrill--over the outcome.

You see, Ateneo has been lording it over in Season 72 that the only question left in their every game is how much garbage time...err...playing time will Vince Burke get.

To some, building these 30-point leads is loads of fun. But if you ask me, it gets tiring after some time.

I've always been a fan of underdogs, and I've never been used to being "spoiled" by this much. Call me a lunatic but I must admit that at some point in the season, I was really wishing that the games were more tightly contested, even if it means sending an "L" along Katipunan's way.

That never happened, as you probably know by now. Very few games--and opponents--offered a legit challenge to the defending champs.

But of course, you can't blame them for that. It's not their fault that they ran roughshod over the competition.

But that is also precisely the reason why I've been waiting for the Playoffs to begin (more like the Finals really, since I had doubts that UST could offer a stiff challenge after running their offense through 2 players the entire year).

Now I don't want to sound like an arrogant bastard to the opposing fans here, but God knows how long I've been waiting for someone or something that would give Rabeh Al-Hussaini and company a run for their money.

And as such, it wasn't surprising that I found myself grinning from ear-to-ear when the Eagles were smothered by the silky smooth hair of Lawrence Chongson last Sunday.

Okay, I wasn't really grinning (lest I get shot by Dick Gordon), but I also wasn't carrying a long face. Bottomline is that finally, after 17 matches and 40,800 seconds of playing time, we've got ourselves a ballgame.

And that is exactly how I like it.