PANIC MODE TIME? | PART 1

A month ago, I came across All-Star Magazine's 2027 PBA Mock Draft, and it inspired me to do my own. Actually, I had to revise my extremely early version of the mock draft at least five times because I wanted my picks to feel more real-time.

My first draft had a Quentin Millora-Brown versus Mike Phillips narrative. This was around the Gilas Pilipinas window, when QMB was left unsigned by the Chiba Jets. I also had a "magic bunot" in the first round for Thirdy Ravena. At that point, the almost-30-year-old former UAAP MVP was still without a team, and before his 2025 SEA Games stint, he basically had little to no playing time in Dubai BC, similar to what happened with Juan Gomez de Liano during his Lithuanian league stint.

When I scheduled my blog for a Sunday release, though, Thirdy signed with the Toyama Grouses. So there. Then, a couple of days later, Gerry Abadiano signed with Ulsan Hyundai Mobis Phoebus. Around the same time, Mike Phillips gave the San Juan Knights his walking papers in anticipation of a possible B.League contract.

So my QMB versus Motor Mike narrative was done.

Crap.

It also didn't help that my other international bet, Migs Oczon, signed with Suwon KT Sonicboom after his stint with Ulsan.

Double crap.

Then the inevitable happened.

Phillips signed a two-year deal with the Kyoto Hannaryz worth around 29 million pesos. Finally, to top it all off, QMB also found a home in Japan, inking a contract with the Nagoya Diamond Dolphins.

In less than a month, what was supposed to be a loaded 2027 PBA Draft class lost its biggest international prospects.

Crap. Crap. Crap!

All the trouble Ginebra and NLEX went through to ruin their alleged farm teams, all the ridiculous moves Titan Ultra made in the middle of the season, and the PBA's decision to free the entirety of 2026 so that all live contracts and obligations are over and done were all for naught.

And to think, this was the best draft in terms of luring the international Pinoy talents. The first two picks are essentially an MVP-versus-SMC battle between two of the richest groups in the league. That's as good as it gets for an incoming freshman. Then the teams picking third, fourth, fifth, and sixth all have enough roster flexibility to land a potential superstar.

Even Magnolia could become a haven for an elite guard or big man.

Rain or Shine just lost Gian Mamuyac and had to wait three more seasons to fill his spot.

Meralco could use another player to bolster their starting lineup.

When the PBA changed its on-court rules, I thought it overlooked a major issue.

More than the hybrid rules, it's the player contracts.

Why are we even talking about multi-year contracts in the middle of the season? I get that the PBA has three conferences, but the league should have a contingency plan in case a player's contract expires in the middle of a conference.

And this is exactly what the comment section of my blog has been saying.

It's easy to ask for more money, but that's only part of the equation. There also have to be corresponding actions. Again, why is the PBA changing its rules and why are teams having contract dealings in the middle of the season? I get this if these are free agents, like, for instance, getting Terrence Romeo back to the PBA. However, Mamuyac and Andrei Caracut are Rain or Shine rotation players. They don't have any beef with the Elasto Painters except that it's the prerogative of a player and his team to have a contract agreed by both parties.

And while I know the four-point shot has become an easy punching bag for fans to clown on, the bigger issue is figuring out how to make PBA games must-see events again. This is co-related, especially with Rain or Shine having that stellar Commissioner's Cup start with both Mamuyac and Caracut integral to their campaign.

For that, I have to go back to the '90s, which I believe was the PBA's best era. During that decade, nine of the league's ten teams won championships. And while Sta. Lucia was the only team to miss out on a title, it still managed five third-place finishes from 1990 to 1999. They had superstars in Jun Limpot and Dennis Espino, and while the SMC teams had the most fans, all ten teams had fighting chances at some point in the decade, unlike today, when the title picture is concentrated in basically four teams.

Yes, most teams lost key pieces when the MBA emerged in 1998. But then-commissioner Jun Bernardino went on the offensive, bringing back many of the players the league had lost while effectively destroying Metroball in the process.

Yes, it may have created a new problem with the Fil-Sham controversy, but if you think about it, that was basically collateral damage in a war the league ultimately won.

And no, I'm not saying the commissionership has to change. But at the very least, the PBA has to find a way to look at things through a wider lens.

Basketball isn't the top sport in Japan or South Korea, and their leagues need imports because they don't have enough local talent to fill all of their roster spots. Japan is the best example. The B.League has a total of 55 teams, with 26 of them competing in B1. Of course, teams will want to sign as many Asian imports as possible, depending on what they can afford.

In the Philippines, where basketball is the country's most popular sport, allowing three foreign imports to play at the same time, similar to what Japan will have in the coming season, wouldn't work. That said, it doesn't mean we can't take advantage of the talent available from other countries.

I'll expand on this topic in my next blog.

At the moment, it feels like the PBA is stranded on a remote island, and the only way it seems willing to get with the program is if there's a public outcry.

The PBA needs to hit the reset button on a lot of things, particularly on how the poor teams keep getting poorer.

If there's one good thing to say about the Macau Giant Pandas, it's that they can build a makeshift basketball team in the shortest time possible.

Let's simplify the league's problems. It's losing young players to international leagues. Players are looking for better compensation. The league isn't as competitive as it used to be. Most of its rulings are reactionary in nature. And too many teams are simply trying to survive instead of fielding a competitive roster.

So how can the PBA solve these problems without disrupting the MPBL and the college leagues?

And yeah, next week I'll be publishing my mock draft.