SMB beefs up Defense with entry of Top Rookies

By BRIAN YALUNG | http://www.mb.com.ph

MANILA, Philippines – After taking into account the Air21 franchise, we now move to the other PBA ballclub, the San Miguel Beermen.

Gone are PBA veterans Danny Seigle, Dondon Hontiveros, Dorian Pena and Paul Artadi. New to the fold are top PBA rookies Rabeh Al-Hussaini, Noy Baclao and Rey Guevarra.

The move was cheered (and jeered) by many as the Beermen successfully infused youth in their aging PBA lineup. However, it seems that SMB’s backcourt has suffered from this PBA trade.

If you will notice, the three new rookies play the center, power forward and small forward positions respectively.

They lost two guards in Hontiveros and Artadi and as of this writing, only Al-Hussaini has the potential firepower to compensate somewhat the departure of Seigle and Hontiveros.

Baclao and Guevarra have so far turned in numbers that leave a lot to be desired.

Baclao has turned in manageable numbers through points and rebounds but Guevarra has yet to show what made him a part of the Smart Gilas team before.

Holdovers of the SMB camp include Jay Washington, Arwind Santos, Alex Cabagnot, Danny Ildefonso, Joseph Yeo, Denok Miranda, Lordy Tugade, Paolo Hubalde, Sunday Salvacion and Mick Pennisi.

Of the mentioned holdovers, Washington, Santos, Cabagnot, Ildefonso, Tugade, Yeo and Salvacion are perhaps the players that can go berserk scoring on any given night.

So does this spell trouble for the SMB camp? Not necessarily.

If you will recall, a sorely missing link to their previous campaigns was defense. This was something that the team had when now B-Meg player Marc Pingris brought when he was still under the ballclub. Ever since his trade, defense was an eye sore.

True enough and knowing Coach Ato Agustin’s philosophy, the Beermen’s intent this time around seems to solidify their defensive needs. And being an import-laden conference, there is Ira Brown to contend with.

The PBA Commissioners Cup may not necessarily be the time to shine for these rookies but the opportunity will be there.

From the looks of it, defense will be the key. Al-Hussaini and Baclao showed that during their stint with the Ateneo Blue Eagles and now they have to show that prowess once again.

The Beermen are still expected to be among the top contenders but the road will not be as easy as before.

All teams know for a fact that defense wins games and with the entry of the youthful big three, a new foundation seems to be in the works.

And to see if that is indeed the motif of the Beermen, we only have to wait until tomorrow to see how the entry of Al-Hussaini, Baclao and Guevarra works for the multi-titled PBA franchise.

Of course, this is discounting the possibility of more trades in the offing.

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