Why go to Italy?

It’s unlikely that either of the national teams playing in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Samsung Governors Cup will make it to the semifinals. Hapee and Selecta might survive the first cut but advancing beyond the quarters may be too tall an order for coach Joseph Uichico’s hopefuls.

Eight teams will qualify for the quarters but only four will figure in the semis before the top two finishers slug it out in the finals.

Uichico isn’t aiming to go all the way with Hapee or Selecta. His objective is to sharpen the boys for the war ahead--the 14th Asian Games in September. The PBA isn’t a challenge for Uichico’s boys --it’s a training ground.

Unfortunately, playing in the PBA won’t bring Uichico’s boys nearly to the level of competence they need to upset the likes of China, Lebanon, and South Korea in Busan. In the Samsung Governors Cup, the nationals are going up against players adjusting to the international rules just like themselves. Those are the same players they’ve been facing season in, season out. Of course, you factor in two imports a team–an aberration that’s more a distraction than anything else.

China, for instance, won’t play like it has only two players on the floor. The Chinese like to move the ball around in the halfcourt and if they can’t set up Yao Ming at the post, Wang Zhizhi will take the three or Hu Weidong will slash.

Don’t get me wrong. Jermaine Walker and Tim Moore are awesome. So are Derrick Brown and Leon White. But you won’t find too many teams leaning on just two players to dominate the offense in Busan. I’m afraid that with the kind of competition Hapee and Selecta are encountering in the First Conference, the nationals could be getting used to playing a style that’s irrelevant in Busan.

Uichico will announce the next cut in the national pool after Hapee and Selecta wind up their affairs in the Samsung Governors Cup. From 27, it’s likely Uichico will trim the roster to 18, making room for players just coming off the injury list. Noy Castillo is coming back from surgery and rehab in the US this Sunday. Ali Peek is still undergoing rehab and will return in two weeks. I wouldn’t blame Uichico if he names Castillo and Peek to the final 18–even if they didn’t play a single game in the Samsung Governors Cup.

In the Commissioner’s Cup, it’s still not certain if the league will allow two imports per team or just one. Hiring two imports is difficult to justify, in peso terms, to corporate stockholders. Perhaps, the league should leave it to the team to choose how many imports to recruit but the option will be available only if it loses three or more regulars to the national pool. Otherwise, it’s just one import with no height limit.

Should the national team play in the Second Conference? I think it’s an exercise in futility. The nationals won’t get anywhere playing against PBA teams. It’s a fact that the growth of local players is stunted because they’re not exposed to players outside of the league.

The national team should compete overseas so Uichico’s boys get a feel of the pressure of defending their flag. It’ll also strengthen the players as a team–the bonding experience is crucial to create a sense of togetherness.

There’s a plan for the national team to play a three-day invitational tournament against Slovenia, Italy and Latvia in Cantu, Italy. That’s another waste of time. The nationals should be building up their confidence not destroying what’s left of it. Slovenia’s top players are Radislav Nesterovic of the Minnessota Timberwolves and naturalized player Arriel McDonald who plays as an import for Maccabi Tel Aviv. Latvia is bannered by 6-9 Maris Laksa of Providence College, former Soviet guard Valdis Valters’ son Kristaps, and Raimundas Miglinieks. Italy, the 1999 European titlist, is led by 7-0 Gregor Fucka and 6-6 Carlton Myers.

Unless Uichico’s boys are masochists, they should stay away from Cantu where they’ll be beaten black and blue. They’re better off playing against US collegiate teams that are comfortable using the zone. The big Europeans will slaughter the nationals mercilessly. Besides, traveling to the US isn’t as tedious as traveling to Cantu.

Former Italian national player Dino Meneghin extended the invitation to the Philippine squad and is supposedly offering to organize an exhibition in Milan as a sweetener. Meneghin should realize that the national pool isn’t looking to party, shop, or go on a vacation. This is serious business. Taking a trip to Italy will be a big mistake.

Instead, the national team should consider playing in the Jones Cup. The Taipei tournament will be an acid test for Uichico’s boys. Forget the Commissioner’s Cup–the nationals will learn nothing more playing in the PBA beyond the Samsung Governors Cup.

I strongly believe that if coach Tim Cone didn’t bring the Centennial team to Taipei for the Jones Cup, the nationals wouldn’t have had the fire in the belly to outlast Kazakhstan for the bronze at the 1998 Asian Games in Bangkok.