Red Bull Players For Sale

Yeah! It’s about fuckin’ time.

SMB-Red Bull trade was too bold and too blatant to pass up? Maybe. As finally, one brave soul among the ranks of mainstream basketball journalists here in the Philippines wrote something profound about this Red Bull and San Miguel Beer trades (then the subsequent Purefoods – Red Bull trade).

It’s Manila Standard’s veteran sportsman Ronnie Nathanielz.

Parts of his story reads… “Some months ago, PBA vice chairman and Red Bull team manager Tony Chua was peddling Enrico Villanueva and other key players on the Red Bull team to any team that was willing and able to pay the asking price which amounted to millions”.

He reportedly had a chat with the Noli Eala about the matter and he basically received a gentleman’s assurance that Villanueva can’t just be traded (read: bought and sold) to any team because he’s in the RTL. A rule where the premiere player/s of each teams can only be traded among the RTL-specified players. Read more

Kobe’s Latest “Truth”

As you’ve probably read and heard, Kobe and the Lakers are making a lot of news this week. Because there is so much speculation, rumor and innuendo floating around, Kobe has been keeping his biggest fans updated on exactly where he stands in his “Truth” section on kb24.com.

Kobe’s official site also has audio from four radio interviews Kobe has done in the last 24 hours. Transcript of Kobe Interview here.

Finally, Kobe uses his official site to speak some “truth”… Read more

Rommel Adducul Is A Hotdog

Rommel Adducul has landed with Purefoods Chunkee Giants after a two-day layover with Red Bull.

Adducul ended up with the Giants following the completion of a three-way trade deal among Red Bull, San Miguel Beer and Purefoods.

Purefoods got Adducul in exchange for Don Camaso after Red Bull earlier acquired him from San Miguel in a surprise deal for Enrico Villanueva.

The PBA Commissioner’s Office is expected to receive the trade paper any time which league observers deemed one-sided for the SMC group. Read more

Lebron Link Love: His View, His Game and His Picture

By not signing on a letter/note made by Cleveland Cavaliers teammate Ira Newble, Lebron James draws criticism for stand on Darfur-Sudan issue.

The open letter made by Ira Newble was condemning China’s government for contributing to the genocide of people in the Darfur region of Sudan.

All the Cavs players signed except Lebron and Damon Jones. Damon Jones is an endorser of Li Ning, a Chinese sports brand. Meanwhile, LeBron is Nike’s ultimate pitchman. Nike has business interests inside the emerging China market. Also, LeBron is booked to represent the US of A (and Nike) in the 2008 Olympics. That explains why James and Jones begged off to sign. Read more

Sydman’s Side Effect: The General Turnaround

I’ve been swamped with work for some time now but this is just too good to pass up.

This week, San Miguel traded Romel Adducul for Red Bull superstar Enrico Villanueva. Here’s the thing: on paper, San Miguel got the better with the acquisition of the Raging Bull (or Beerman). Adducul has yet to provide the numbers that was perceived from him while Villanueva is turning out to be a superstar in the works.

However, my take in this trade is that it benefits Red Bull more than San Miguel. This season is perhaps Villanueva’s weakest ever. Sure he has developed to be a powerhouse but sharing minutes with Carlo Sharma took a lot of his “star-ness” so to speak.

Read more

Lebron James 80 Foot Bombs

Here’s the real one… Read more

PBA Stories: Villanueva Traded and the RP Five Sweep

Two big news hugging the PBA top stories…

One, it was expected of them, the RP National Team swept the 7th Southeast Asian Basketball Association Men’s Championship, 4 - 0.

The final win came after scoring a 96 - 76 victory over the host Thailand. The Philippines won with an average of 38.5 margin. So still, SEA Basketball is still Philippines turf.

Thailand was the only team to lead over the Philippines in the first quarter. Kudos to Thailand for losing the game with the “slimmest” margin amongst RP Five victims. Result of the tournament here.

Despite the victory, a hint of line-up change was given by Chot Reyes. Possible additions are Willie Miller, Kelly Williams and Gabe Norwood (Fil-Am cager). What I don’t get is, neither Kelly Williams nor Willie Miller was injured at the time of formation of the original 12, why only now that the coaching staff feels that they may need the services of the two players. If at all, Willie Miller is just a duplicate of Mark Caguioa. Read more

Ball Hog: LeBroom Prevented, Kobe Trade, Jianlian Workout and PBA Updates

Lebron James Prevented Being Called LeBroom

In Game 1 at Detroit, James was criticized for not taking the Cavs’ final shot. In Game 2, James was swarmed by defenders and couldn’t get off a clean attempt in the foul lane in the waning moments of the Pistons’ second straight 79-76 win (yes, identical 79-76 losses).

After averaging only 14.5 ppg the first two games, Lebron James made sure Game 3 won’t be decided in the few seconds. He almost had a triple double, finishing the game with 32 points, nine rebounds ad nine assists. Series is now 2-1, Cavs still trailing. Game recap here.

Kobe wants West to return to Lakers with full authority

What a way to sneak in some Kobe and Lakers news during the heat of conference finals. Kobe says, if Jerry West isn’t back running the Lakers show, he wants out of L.A. Talk about a double punch straight to Mitch Kupchack’s and Phil’s throats. Said Kobe, “I want to see us get to a contending level,” he told The Los Angeles Times. “I want to see us become a championship contender. It’s been a frustrating process for me and I’m sure it’s been a frustrating process for all Laker fans. I’m just hoping we can get to that level. I’m still frustrated. I’m waiting for them to make some changes.” Said West, “I’m a lifelong Laker and we will see what happens.” But wait Kobe, aren’t you the same guy who did nothing to make sure that Shaq stays in LA? And when Kobe says, “I can no longer wait,” is it a direct hit on Lakers’ project Andrew Bynum? Read more

Ritualo Explosion Makes It Three In A Row For RP Five

Renren Ritualo, the forgotten gunner on the star-studded San Miguel-Pilipinas team, emerged from the shadows Sunday and reintroduced himself in fiery fashion.

With the game against Malaysia tied 21-all early in the second quarter, Ritualo came off the dark end of the bench and sparked a blinding flash of offense, burying five straight three-point shots and setting off a scorching 20-4 run that left the Nationals’ third opponent withered.

The breathtaking 102-72 victory moved SMC-RP within a win over host Thailand Monday of sweeping the Southeast Asian Basketball Association Men’s Championship and of securing the first berth to the Beijing Olympics qualifier, the FIBA-Asia Men’s Championship July 28-August 5 in Tokushima, Japan

Ritualo was flawless from beyond the arc until the half was nearly over. His sixth attempt rimmed out but Mick Pennisi and Mark Caguioa picked up the pace, hitting three more as the Nationals wound up the half with nine 3-pointers, the Malaysians’ zone hapless in the wake of SMC-RP’s torrid offensive display.

Malaysia had four 3-point shots in the first quarter, following the trend set by the Nationals’ first two opponents – Singapore and Indonesia.

But the script called for a Philippine explosion in the second quarter and that was what Ritualo provided, dropping one long-distance bomb after another during the period and then adding four more in the second half to fortify his sharpshooter’s reputation.

“Mission accomplished today,” beamed RP coach Chot Reyes. “Tomorrow, hopefully, we achieve our goal.”

Reyes said the ultimate goal was to get to the Olympics via the FIBA-Asia tournament, but that winning the SEABA title was also a must.

The Thais shouldn’t be much of a problem despite the hometown crowd behind them, and the road to Tokushima appears paved every step of the way.

Ritualo has been a quiet presence in the national team, his minutes dwindled by the searing explosiveness of Caguioa. Full Story…

RP Spanked The Singaporeans

Nelson Beltran of Philstar.com reports how the Philippines Five spanked the Singaporeans mercilessly, scoring a 122 - 55 victory to start the 7th SEABA campaign.

RATCHABURI, Thailand — The SMC-RP team took the measure of the highly physical game Singapore put up early on. Then, rampage the Nationals went on.

Coach Chot Reyes and his troops started their quest for a stint in the 2008 Beijing Games with a 122-55 massacre of the Singaporeans in Day 2 of the SEABA men’s basketball championship at the Ratchaburi Gymnasium here yesterday.

Wingmen Mark Caguioa, Dondon Hontiveros and Danny Seigle each scored at least 20 points for the RP team which scrambled at the start but blazed home after picking up their game in the second quarter.

Reyes, however, was far from satisfied.

“We didn’t get the start we wanted. We failed on the goals we set for this match. Obviously, there’s pretty much to be desired in our game,” said Reyes, giving his team a failing grade in their opening game in this FIBA-Asia championship qualifier.

“We can’t afford the start we had in this game. We’re facing tougher games ahead,” Reyes stressed.

The Nationals trailed most of the first quarter before eventually surging ahead, 25-20, on an eight-to-nothing attack by Hontiveros, Seigle, Caguioa and Jimmy Alapag towards the end of the period.

Read more

Next Page »