Moran, 58, is a rookie coach in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) and after two games, has rocked the leagues foundations with his unorthodox style. He benched the years first overall draft pick Rich Alvarez in Shells opening game against Barangay Ginebra and introduced midnight practices that took players out of their sleep routine.
For what hes done, Moran has drawn flak from critics. He says he forgives them for they know not of what they speak. "Theyre just showing their ignorance," says the gruff Brooklyn native, who played basketball for the US Navy in 1963-64. "Some people told me Filipinos wouldnt be able to do what Ive asked them to do. Well, look at my guys at Shell. Theyre enjoying it. Theyre liking it. Theyre eating it up."
Moran says the "pure motion" system hes applying for Shell is different from what PBA fans are used to watching on the court.
"Theyve never seen it before," notes Moran. "But I gotta do whats best for my team. Its a rough road ahead. Were rebuilding. But Im confident things are falling into place just right. It takes time to master the system but in the end, I know Shell will turn it around."
Moran explains that his system involves a lot of freedom for players. "Look at what its done for Chris (Calaguio)," he points out. "In the Ginebra game, Chris shot 24 points. We dont run set plays. Pure motion means no patterns, no two of the same things being done, like cuts or reads. Thats why you dont see me calling plays from the bench. Its all about players turning, twisting, cutting, adjusting, finding their spots, and getting creative. Its a system that breeds intelligent players."
Moran says on the floor, the players must learn to fend for themselves and not look to the coach for what to do. "Theyre on their own out there," he continues. "My job is to teach them how to adapt to situations on the floor. The players must take control on the court. At practice, I teach them how to move to the right spot, when to pass, where to catch the ball and all that. Its like doing calculus. The mental focus in pure motion is demanding. Once we get the system going and were closer to being fluid, we can play with anybody out there."
Moran says his system is tailor-made for unselfishness. "Its a pretty interesting system and Ive gotten some good feedback," he adds. "Coach (Tim) Cone has noticed it already. I think its a system that can make the Philippine team easily beat Korea and Japan. If youre selfish, you cant play in that style. In the NBA (National Basketball Association), players have gotten to be too selfish and thats why they struggle in international competitions against teams like Argentina and Yugoslavia."
As for his midnight practices, Moran says it was a bonding tool. "Conditioning was an aspect, too," he says. "I wanted to tax the guys mentally. We ran about eight of those practices, some from 10 p.m. to midnight, others from 11 p.m. to 1 a.m. Never more than two hours. Wed do twice a day practices. After the midnight sessions, the players would go to sleep with what theyve learned on their minds. When they wake up, theyre mentally prepared to go at a higher rate of speed for the next practice. A lot of it was mental conditioning. But thats over with now. The season has started so were doing regular schedules."
Moran says US NCAA Division I basketball teams start out the preseason with midnight practices. "They call it midnight madness," he notes. In the US, NCAA teams are not allowed to start practices until the opening of the preseason and some make an event of their first sessions, gathering boosters, students and faculty to the gym at the stroke of midnight.
On Alvarez benching in the Ginebra game, Moran says he did it for the rookies own good. "Rich came in from the PBL (Philippine Basketball League) and started practicing with us about seven days before our first game," he explains. "It just wasnt enough time for him to learn our system considering the rest of the guys had been practicing for over a month. I didnt want to rush him. Hes thanked me for it twice now. It was better that way. Hes an intelligent kid. Hes like a sponge, absorbing everything he can from practice, taking home videos and studying them. Hes always asking questions because hes eager to learn. He works hard. Now, the nervousness of playing in the season opener is gone. It will pay off eventually because I know hes going to be a great PBA player."