This long break is another product of the Commissioner Narvasa problem and I feel bored. A week-long break after only two weeks of action?
Wow.
Going back to the action, I think we will be having a pretty good season. Even with the strong hold of the SMC teams, the independent teams looks much better than last season.
So, here is another power ranking to showcase that.
#12 Kia Picanto (Previously #12)
So, we are bound to see the unconventional style that coach Joe Lipa used, in his defense of the Kia-SMB trade. So, I am pretty excited to see how will it turn out.
#11 Phoenix Fuel Masters (Previously #11)
Phoenix has a lot of bright spots in terms of individual play. But, the team as a whole is still lacking. They are trying to medicate their problem in size with positioning and gang rebounding but that will not last, because the more games they will have, the easier for their opponent to read them and take advantage.
#10 Blackwater Elite (Previously #10)
The 25 points, 7 rebounds and 5/9 three-point shooting of Belo is a good sign of good things to come for the Elite. If he can sustain his outside shot in an elite level, Blackwater could be an Elite team.
#9 Rain or Shine Elasto Painters (Previously #8)
The alarming trend for the Elasto Painters, in their first two game, was their 84.5 point production. And the ironic thing was, they managed to shoot 21 three-pointers.
Combine that with the fact that they can only get 18 assists per game, 3rd worst in the league. If they want to turn this around, they may need to give more minutes to Chris Tiu, who is shooting lights out.
#8 Globalport Batang Pier (Previously #6)
Missing Terrence Romeo could be the main culprit why Batang Pier will underwhelm this conference. Stanley Pringle will still be effective but he will need help from his supporting cast.
Other than Jonathan Grey and Sean Anthony, Kelly Nabong's work inside could be important to at least get some Ws before the return of Romeo.
#7 NLEX Road Warriors (Previously #9)
I cannot remember any rookie who managed to fill the stat-sheet in the first two games, the way Kiefer Ravena did. He averaged 19.0 points, 4.5 rebounds, 8.5 assists and 3.0 steals.
Now that coach Yeng has a legit guard to run his drive-wave scheme, I can see NLEX rising in this ranking. Don't miss out on them, especially with the way they are sharing the ball.
#6 Alaska Aces (Previously #3)
I love the fact that the Beast could finally break away from the minutes-distribution of coach Alex Compton. The problem is, it seems like the peak of this team with the scheme that they have is not championship caliber.
If Jeron Teng can keep up his pace and production, he could pushed their ceiling but will that be enough to overcome the powerhouse squads?
#5 Meralco Bolts (Previously #7)
Facing a gigantic challenge in the San Miguel Beermen without Ranidel de Ocampo, Cliff Hodge and Jared Dillinger, the Bolts relied on their coach to find a way.
And he did. Coach Norman Black could be the most underrated coach in the history of the league but he again showed that he knows how to win games with his "bunot" of Ken Bono and their sudden barrage of three-pointers.
Don't count out the Bolts in this race, because coach Norman can turn the frontline of RDO, Ballesteros, Hodge, Canaleta and Hugnatan into a capable unit against the gigantic frontlines.
#4 TNT Ka-Tropa (Previously #5)
I am begging you coach Nash, give Moala Tautuaa more minutes! Stop believing that the old Kelly Williams should play 20+ minutes in the playoffs to win the championship. The guy that you should be molding into that 20+ minutes distributor is Moala!
His physical tools will be the key to match-up with the bigs of the other teams. Let Castro and the other point guards break the defense and find him!
#3 Magnolia Hotshots (Previously #4)
Their fight with Ginebra said something about Magnolia. They are a very good defensive team but they need to find a way to balance that out by scoring enough points to win games.
The brightspot of that game was the 25 points of Ian Sangalang who managed to out-position the much taller frontline of Ginebra for most of the night.
If he can sustain that and coach Chito provides more option for him to pass in the outside, Magnolia will reach a different level.
#2 Brgy. Ginebra San Miguel (Previously #2)
Ginebra can beat teams in different ways. They defeated Magnolia with their suffocating defense, led by the huge space that Slaughter ate up.
Do not underestimate their bench also, because it can easily pour 40 points in a night with Mercado, Caguioa and Cruz there.
Overall, Ginebra is a team that will be hard to beat by any team, even SMB.
#1 San Miguel Beermen (Previously #1)
Seriously, do they even need Christian Standhardinger to win the crown this conference? Maybe yes, because each of ttheir starting five is playing more than 36 minutes a game.
Fatigue may not be a huge factor for the Beermen because they only have 11 elimination games but the risk of injury is much higher with more playing time.
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