BLACKWATER: THE CARIASO ERA FALLOUT

After two and a half seasons as Blackwater coach, Jeffrey Cariaso has been relieved of his duties.

And while The Jet disputes that he resigned from his post, it feels like his firing was only a matter of time.

It’s unfair to say that Cariaso doesn’t have a winning tradition in his veins. He had a hand in San Mig Super Coffee’s grand slam run as an assistant coach before moving to Ginebra as head coach in the Governor’s Cup, which made him miss the actual feat by one conference. He was also part of Alaska’s 1996 grand slam as a player. The guy is one of the league’s 50 Greatest Players, with a BPC as his major individual achievement.

And if you look at the team’s jerseys, as well as the history of some of his players, he was clearly trying to transform Blackwater into his version of Alaska.

However, despite three major PBA Draft finds in Sedrick Barefield, Christian David, and Dalph Panopio, Cariaso failed to end the team’s championship drought. In fact, it wasn’t even close. In six conferences, Blackwater failed to make the playoffs, and that streak would have likely extended to seven had he stayed. This season, Blackwater went 1–10 in the Philippine Cup, and at the time of his exit, they were 1–4.

With a 24 percent win percentage, you can’t fault Blackwater for looking at other coaching options.

JEFFREY CARIASO'S RECORD

AS BLACKWATER BOSSING COACH

SEASON	WIN	LOSS	BEST FINISH	MAJOR DRAFT PICK	BIG PICKUP
2023-24	5	17	ELIMS	CHRISTIAN DAVID | #2	REY NAMBATAC
2024-25	10	23	ELIMS	SEDRICK BAREFIELD | #2	ABU TRATTER
2025-26	2	14	ELIMS	DALPH PANOPIO | #3	DAVID MURRELL
OVERALL	17	54	ELIMS

(According to Wiki)

If Cariaso is patterning his triumvirate after the Alaska squads of the 2000s, Barefield could be his Willie Miller, David his Tony De La Cruz, and Panopio his JVee Casio. If that’s the case, then he’s still missing players who can replicate the impact of Joe Devance and Sonny Thoss—and that’s the problem.

It’s hard for Blackwater to dominate other teams with a second-rate frontline.

Coincidentally, Patrick Aquino was recently relieved of his duties as head coach of the Gilas Pilipinas women’s team, a position he had held since 2014. Before that, Aquino coached the Ever Bilena-backed women’s team of the late 90s and the NU Lady Bulldogs, who won six championships under his guidance.

Ever Bilena Inc. owns the Blackwater franchise, and before becoming the team’s interim head coach, Aquino was one of Cariaso’s assistants.

Because of this, it’s easy to believe that the team’s decision-makers are eyeing Aquino as Cariaso’s long-term replacement, with the interim tag serving as an audition. That said, Aquino's credentials alone should already be enough to earn him a fair shot.

However, for this to work, ownership also needs to do its part. It’s nice to build a team from the ground up, but the team also has to aim for the best—and that hasn’t really been the case for the Bossing.

They lost Troy Rosario uncontested to Ginebra and failed to replace him with anything respectable in free agency. They traded for Rey Nambatac, only to lose him later for players who have barely seen action. And we still cringe at the thought of a roster that once featured Bobby Ray Parks, JP Erram, and Brandon Ganuelas-Rosser. At this point, you have to wonder how long it will be before they move David, Barefield, and Panopio as well.

Yes, the current PBA talent pool leaves a lot to be desired, especially for a team often labeled as part of the MVP farm system. But how can a coach produce wins without the right personnel? If you match Blackwater against a top-tier MPBL team, they can still win—but by how much?

Really, by how much?

And what happens when they face well-structured teams like Abra, San Juan, Quezon, or Batangas City?

Ugh.

That said, a coaching change still feels necessary for a team trying to break out of its decade-long slump. Cariaso did what he could with the roster, but a new voice might unlock something different. Dalph Panopio, in particular, is one name that could benefit. His usage dropped with RK Ilagan's return from injury, but I believe he should be used the same way Converge uses Juan Gomez de Liano. Ilagan is solid—and surprisingly still just 29 years old despite entering the league in 2021—but Panopio is the more marketable long-term prospect, especially with Blackwater potentially landing a top pick in the 2027 PBA Draft given their current trajectory (although they have to settle with their late first-round pick because their original pick is now with NLEX).

All in all, this could be a step in the right direction for both sides. Cariaso might find a role as an assistant coach in another PBA team, in college, or even in the MPBL. At the same time, the Blackwater Bossing finally chase that elusive playoff run—and possibly get back on track toward their first-ever PBA title.