Danny the victim - SPORTING CHANCE by Joaquin M. Henson

Poor Danny Ildefonso.

Last Sunday, he quietly walked out of the Big Dome after being told he couldn’t march in the parade at the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) 27th season inaugurals. What a way to treat the league’s MVP last year.

Ildefonso couldn’t hold back his tears. Under league rules, a player without a contract is a free agent without a team. His rights are still held by San Miguel Beer but until he is signed to a contract, Ildefonso remains homeless.

Nobody told Ildefonso he couldn’t march until a few minutes before the parade. In good faith, he went to the Araneta Coliseum to join the Beermen in the festivities. He’d been showing up at San Miguel’s practices even without a contract.

As he lined up to be introduced, Viva Vintage Sports floor director Willie Marcial broke the news. Marcial was advised by PBA Commissioner Emilio Bernardino to stop Ildefonso from marching. Later, San Miguel skipper Olsen Racela went up to Ildefonso to explain the situation.

Reporters rushed to Ildefonso as he stood almost paralyzed in the corridor leading to the hardcourt. Someone asked if he thought it was unfair to prevent him from marching. Another wondered if Ildefonso felt betrayed. Ildefonso took a deep breath, closed his eyes tightly, and turned away.

So where was Ildefonso’s bright agent William Ong during his emotional breakdown? I didn’t see him. Ildefonso said he was around, somewhere. Maybe, he was in a corner adding up the numbers in Tanduay’s offer sheet in his little black book.

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Last Thursday, Ildefonso signed a mind-boggling P96 million, 16-year offer sheet from Tanduay. It was Ong’s handiwork. Ong prodded Tanduay to come up with the mother of all offer sheets. Ildefonso signed on the dotted line, obviously not realizing the implications in his career.

The offer from Tanduay is unprecedented – 16 years is a long time. Ildefonso will be 40 when the term of Tanduay’s offer sheet expires. Will he still be playing then? Will Tanduay still operate a PBA franchise? Will the PBA still exist in the year 2017?

The offer isn’t only unrealistic, it’s also an insult to the intelligence of PBA officials. It’s a blatant attempt to challenge the spirit behind the salary cap rule. It’s unreasonable and dangerous.

Ong is to blame for this obscenity. Clearly, he has no appreciation of how the PBA works because his bold act threatens the existence of the league itself. Imagine if other players as talented as Ildefonso will begin to demand contracts as outlandish. The league won’t be able to withstand the aftershocks of the economic earthquake–it will die an unnatural death. And when that happens, who will pay for the players’ salaries?

Contrary to what he claims, Ong has no feeling for Ildefonso. I suspect he wangled the deal from Tanduay more for himself than his client. I wonder how much is his commission? Will he get it up front or on a staggered basis? Will he get a cut from Ildefonso’s paycheck plus an add-on 10 percent from Tanduay for bringing the MVP to the Rhum Masters camp?

If Ong saw Ildefonso crying last Sunday, he would’ve realized the damage he has wrought. Ildefonso has been ostracized as a greedy, selfish, malcontent.

In the National Basketball Association (NBA), it may be fashionable for players to swagger with megabuck contracts and they couldn’t care less what the fans think. But in the PBA, it’s not the same. Filipinos aren’t Americans — we’re a different breed.

I wonder how Kenneth Duremdes feels now that he’s inked an eight-year contract. Does he feel superior to his teammates? Do his teammates treat him the same way now as before? How will their relationship affect the team’s performance?

How will other PBA players react to Ildefonso’s deals?

If Ong thinks he’s made Ildefonso a happy man, he should’ve seen him shedding tears last Sunday.

The PBA should put an end to the shenanigans of carpetbaggers masquerading as player agents who unknowingly, are killing the league.

Think of the PBA the players who were lured to the Metrotpolitan Basketball Association (MBA) by contracts stipulating monthly salaries of as much as P700,000. Are those players drawing salaries today? The MBA is on the verge of collapse because of financial difficulties brought about by skyrocketing player salaries. Will the PBA follow suit?

The salary cap shouldn’t be the only means to protect the league from the wild demands of agents. There should be a limit to how long a contract can run — a maximum of five years is reasonable. Duremdes’ eight-year contract should be remanded to conform to whatever is the prescribed limit.

Under PBA rules, whatever is guaranteed income is considered part of the salary cap so that would include signing bonuses and non-contingent perks such as a car, plane tickets, and allowances. Income that is tied in to performance is also restricted using a different formula.

If a team is caught violating salary cap rules by hiding guaranteed income or perks, it should be fined heavily and considered for expulsion. That’s the only way to penalize teams that do not consider the league’s interest as the ultimate priority.

The PBA must also begin to institute an accreditation procedure for player agents. In the NBA, player agents are licensed and bound by strict rules of ethical conduct. In the PBA, player agents run wild and often hold teams hostage to the league’s detriment. It’s high time the league cracks down on player agents who think only of themselves and use their clients as convenient scapegoats for their nefarious deals.

The Ildefonso offer sheet provides the PBA an opportunity to put its foot down. The PBA shouldn’t give in to Ong’s whims. The nature of a 16-year contract is anomalous and threatens the PBA’s long-term existence. The PBA should void the offer sheet, put Ong in his place, and give poor Ildefonso a chance to save himself from emotional ruin.