THE MORNING AFTER: Magnolia’s Trading Frenzy (from Los Angeles California)
    By Sam Miguel for Philippinebasketball.ph 03/28/2008

I haven’t been away two weeks and already the San Miguel Corporation Invitational League, este the PBA, has seen some pretty heavy trading of star players. In the midst of it all is Magnolia, the flagship team of the SMC brotherhood of PBA teams.

Last week they traded pointguard LA Tenorio and swingman Larry Fonacier to Alaska for pointguard Mike Cortez and center-forward Ken Bono. Tenorio and Fonacier were teammates at the Ateneo De Manila and were responsible for bringing the 2002 UAAP championship to the Blue Eagles. Cortez is the multi-titled star guard of the mighty La Salle Green Archers. Bono was the Season 69 UAAP Most Valuable Player, but has seen little playing time thus far.

This week Magnolia went on a trade binge again, sending center-forward Enrico Villanueva to Purefoods and forward Willie Wilson to Ginebra. In exchange they got forward-center Marc Pingris from Purefoods and 2-guard Chester Tolomia from Welcoat. Ginebra gave up two backcourt men: Swingman Mac Macapagal goes to Coke; guard Macky Escalona goes to Welcoat. A couple of draft picks were also thrown into this complicated deal and I stopped caring who would get them.

I’m not quite sure how all of this went down, but isn’t there supposed to be a rule that prohibits sister companies from engaging in any player trading amongst themselves in the PBA? Oh sorry, this just in: apparently Coke is no longer an SMC concern, so they were used as a bridge aside from Welcoat in a labyrinthine four-team deal. I wonder if Coke will return to the SMC group next week after the trade has settled down.

Big picture time: It looks like Villanueva will be insurance for the Tender Juicy Giants now that Romel “The General” Adducul has been diagnosed with some form of nasal cancer. Adducul is not only ill but getting on in years. Although he is still arguably the best seal-off and back down center in the PBA, his age and illness may have gotten Purefoods thinking. Villanueva is cut from the same cloth as Adducul but is several years younger.

Cortez was once considered the cornerstone of the Alaska franchise. A high-energy guard who does everything at a high level, who can score as easily as he can create scoring opportunities for others, who sets the table and passes first, he was seen as the new face of the Aces. With the MVP play of Willie Miller though, perhaps Alaska thought more about winning as much as they can with Miller and getting him complimentary players instead of rivals for the franchise player throne.

Alaska now gets a young pointguard who struggled during the last All Filipino Cup and a heady swingman with a dead-eye shot and the ability to distribute almost as well as any fulltime guard. Tenorio put up underwhelming numbers in the All Filipino Cup as the first pointguard off the bench to relieve super veteran Olsen Racela. Fonacier found himself on the wrong end of a numbers game. Magnolia had Dondon Hontiveros, Chris Calaguio and Lourdy Tugade, all of whom play the same position as Fonacier, but are stronger, tougher and more natural athletes. Ironically Tugade was even a one-time teammate of Fonacier’s when both were with Red Bull. Both men will now play alongside Miller. Tenorio will be a perfect fit for the up tempo play Miller prefers while Fonacier will be a perfect kick-out receiver when defenses key in on Miller.

Cortez will likely be asked to run the offense more than Racela, although Racela will still likely be the man at the point for the Beverage Masters in the fourth quarter. The Cool Cat is a perfect counterpoint to the cerebral Racela, and should provide a good change of pace should Magnolia want to run and gun more often. Bono is still an odd man out though, as the athletic Pingris now joins the towering Magnolia skyline of Sam Eman, Dorian Pena and Danny Ildefonso. Bono will not be alone on the bench though as Tolomia will likely keep him company on the pines (see Fonacier).

Caught in the flurry were Escalona and Macapagal, a couple of players who were playing relatively well for Ginebra but are now thrust into teams that may or may not give them time to develop. Escalona was Tenorio’s caddy in college, and now joins a struggling franchise after receiving the maximum rookie salary, a problem the supposedly cash-strapped Welcoat franchise may not have considered. Macapagal may not make the money Escalona does but he was arguably an effective player for the Barangay, coming off the bench firing and being a match-up problem no defense wants to touch. How he will fit into a Coke lineup that has seemingly discovered a budding superstar swingman of their own in Ronjay Enrile will be interesting to watch.

My fearless prediction is that this is not the last of the blockbuster trades. In the next couple of weeks expect more movement. Scuttlebutt has it that Magnolia coach Siot Tanquincen wants to bring something Fast and Furious to his lineup, and may move Cortez yet again plus possibly one of the three veteran swingmen aforementioned to get his wish. And since SMC is famous for spreading the wealth (at least among loyal lieutenants) Ginebra coach Jong Uichico is also making a move to try and bring some younger and healthier firepower and ceiling to his lineup.

Indeed, it seems the rich get richer.