PBA Philippine Cup

Does San Miguel still have enough to contend for the title?

Ariel Ian Clarito

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Does San Miguel still have enough to contend for the title?
The San Miguel Beermen need to squeeze more from their reserves as they feature a top 5 with an average age of 35

When news came out that June Mar Fajardo was not well enough to play in the Clark bubble, a dark gloom was cast over San Miguel Beer’s quest to retain its Philippine Cup championship.

Naysayers claimed that San Miguel’s hold on the title was dependent largely on the shoulders of the six-time PBA MVP.

Then Terrence Romeo came down with a shoulder injury in their second game in the bubble, a losing effort to the Talk ‘N Text Tropang Giga. 

Just like that, the odds against San Miguel increased manyfold. After all, not only were they missing the most dominant big man in Philippine basketball in Fajardo, but they were also going to be deprived of the services of one of the most creative and dynamic scorers in the PBA.

Even when they won their last game versus Terra Firma Dyip to even their standing to two wins and two losses, there were still doubts about the Beermen’s ability to be at the very least competitive, or contend for the crown.

But a closer look at the roster of San Miguel will reveal that they have the firepower to go for another run at the Philippine Cup championship.

Any team that has a backcourt troika showcasing Alex Cabagnot, Chris Ross, and Marcio Lassiter will always be a threat. 

At 37 years old, Cabagnot remains among the steadiest players in the game and still averages 11.56 points per outing. 

Lassiter continues to shoot just as good as anyone in the game. Among players attempting at least 5 times a game from the three-point area, Lassiter ranks second only to Bobby Ray Parks in accuracy with a 46% shooting clip. 

Ross is still the gold standard among the defensive playmakers in the PBA. He is currently third in the league in steals with 2.25 swipes per game.

What has made San Miguel the most successful franchise in the PBA for the past half decade is their ability to spread out the floor by positioning their firepower both in the lane and on the perimeter.

In the games that they lost to Rain or Shine and TNT, Mo Tautuaa and Arwind Santos teamed up for no more than 20 points per outing. The two had a combined 41.5 point average in their two wins this conference.

San Miguel becomes a dangerous team when their big men are actively involved in the game. This opens the floor for their backcourt to penetrate the lane or snipe from outside. 

Of course, they will be hard-pressed to compensate for the loss of Fajardo, who attracts defenders like moths to the light. 

Santos has shown he still has some spring left in his 39 year old legs as he is still scoring over 14 points a game, while Tautuaa is having the best start in his PBA career with his average of over 19 points. 

The problem for San Miguel is that Santos and Tautuaa sometimes disappear from impacting the game when the ball is dominated by the Beermen’s platoon of guards and wingmen. This makes San Miguel predictable. 

The team is second-worst in the league in free throw attempts, an indication that they are not attacking the basket as much and often are relegated to becoming a jump-shooting team. The team also is not crashing the board as they rank last in the league in rebounds. 

The Beermen may not be the deepest team in the pool, but in Von Pessumal and Paul Zamar, they have two gunners from the bench who can light up the scoreboard when given the playing time. 

San Miguel, though, struggles when either Santos or Tautuaa has to take a breather or is saddled with fouls. The frontline options for San Miguel from the bench is mostly limited to Russel Escoto and Billy Mamaril, who together chip in only 4 points and 4 boards. 

Coach Leo Austria will have to not only devise ways to ensure Santos and Tautuaa get their touches, but he will also need to squeeze more from his reserves. San Miguel’s best 5 featuring Tautuaa, Santos, Lassiter, Cabagnot, and Ross is not a young 5 with an average age of 35 years old. 

The Philippine Cup is a sprint where teams will play only 11 games in the preliminaries, with very few days off in between games. San Miguel will have to preserve their core so they will still have fresh legs for the big games beginning in the quarterfinals.

Austria is an astute technician who knows how to win. Even without Fajardo and Romeo, San Miguel is still a dangerous team with an experienced core which has won numerous times together. 

This is a proud franchise, the winningest ball club in fact in the PBA. The road to the title will still go through the Beermen, who are still armed with enough ammunition to defend the fortress they have built around the Philippine Cup these past 6 years. – Rappler.com 

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