Air21 likely renamed Barako Bull

MANILA, Philippines - Air21 is expected to take flight when the PBA’s 37th season opens Oct. 2 with the franchise carrying the brand Barako Bull and in a marketing twist, the former Barako Bull team will be known as Shopinas.

Businessman Bert Lina controls two companies that own two separate PBA franchises. Air Freight 2100 recently bought the Barako Bull team and assigned it to a subsidiary Shopinas which is involved in e-commerce or internet trading. Linaheim Holdings owns the Air21 franchise whose governor is Manny Alvarez, a Lina group executive detailed to Waste and Resources Management or WARM.

With the Lina group buying into George Chua’s energy drink business, the speculation is Air21 will be renamed Barako Bull. The Shopinas governor will be Lina’s 29-year-old daughter Sheila, only the league’s second female Board representative since Nikki Coseteng of Mariwasa.

PBA commissioner Chito Salud welcomed the purchase and reactivation of the old Barako Bull franchise which was dormant the last two conferences. “The good news is we’re back to 10 teams,” said Salud.

Lina said Shopinas will maintain a youthful and vibrant look. The target is to keep an average age of 27. A source said team officials are now conducting interviews to recruit a coach. Three PBA assistant coaches were rumored to be in the candidates list. No decision has been made on a coach but an announcement will be definitely made before the Aug. 28 draft.

Meanwhile, if Air21 evolves into Barako Bull, its image will be distinctly macho. The players to fill the roster will fit that mold. The only Air21 players with unexpired contracts are Wynne Arboleda, Leo Najorda, Elmer Espiritu and Carlo Sharma so coach Bong Ramos has the opportunity to almost start from scratch.

“We will not hold a dispersal draft for Shopinas,” said Salud. “There will be no protect eight, nine or 10. We expect Shopinas to request for concessions in the draft and possibly, it may be given the last pick of the first round and the first pick of the second round. As commissioner, I will make sure that both Air21, or whatever it will be called, and Shopinas are competitive. We realize that Shopinas is a new team and it will need some help to build up. If trades come up, we will make sure they are even. In the end, every team is accountable to the public, especially to its fans, in so far as trades or player movements are concerned. The bottom line is trades must be balanced and teams become stronger because of the trades.”

At the moment, a moniker for Shopinas is being carefully thought out. The moniker should reflect the business of the company. A suggestion is to call it something that rhymes with the Clippers, an NBA team from Los Angeles.

Alvarez said Lina’s marching orders are for both teams to be competitive and affirmed that neither team is for sale.

Alvarez said Air21’s 0-8 record in the Governors Cup will serve as a challenge for next season. Air21 made it to the semifinals of the Commissioner’s Cup but lost three in a row to Talk ‘N’ Text. Overall, the team now has a streak of 11 straight losses.

Alvarez attributed the slide to three factors. “First, Dorian (Peña) got injured in the first game of the conference, taking away our post presence,” he explained. “Second, Dondon (Hontiveros) fell into a slump which nobody can blame him for. He was fatigued. Dondon had no rest in between conferences because of his commitment with Smart Gilas. He actually asked us if we could allow him a two week break to take a vacation in the US but the conference was about to start. Like a true pro, Dondon stayed and played. But it took a toll on him. Lastly, our import (Alpha) Bangura didn’t play up to par. It could’ve been his nagging groin injury or that other teams learned how to defend him. We even brought his family over to keep him in town from when the second conference ended.”

Alvarez said Air21 has two first round picks in the coming draft. One is the third overall slot and Alvarez remarked that the team will probably tap the top available talent, regardless of his position. For instance, if Marcio Lassiter and Jvee Casio are picked 1-2, Alvarez said it’s possible Mac Baracael will be the third choice. A big man in Alvarez’ sights is Gilas center Jason Ballesteros.