April 28, 2017

2017 PBA Commissioner's Cup Power Rankings (April 28 201)7



The first PBA All-Star Game this season finished a couple of nights ago in Cagayan De Oro, and the second one is set today in Lucena City. Coach Chot Reyes is expected to make his much awaited announcement about the final composition of Gilas Pilipinas for the SEABA Championship after today's All-Star match, and all eyes and ears are surely set for that one.

Let us, however, revisit how the teams have been doing this conference. San Miguel Beer is on a tear, of course, sitting pretty on top with a 5-0 slate, while Meralco has remained strong at 6-1. Ginebra has zoomed to the top three as well, sporting a 4-1 slate, while early leaders like Alaska, Star, and TNT have absorbed some defeats that have pushed them down to the middle of the pack.

Let's look at our second set of power rankings for this conference.

1 - San Miguel Beermen (5-0) -same-
- The Beermen have won three in a row since our last power rankings, beating Star, Mahindra, and ROS successively by an average of 16 points. To say they have been dominant is an understatement, and it is reasonable to expect them to contine their winning ways moving forward. They will be tested in their next four matches though, which feature TNT, Ginebra, and Alaska while winless NLEX should be an almost certain notch on the win column again.
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2 - Barangay Ginebra (4-1) -up 4 spots-
- The Gin Kings have rattled off four victories in a row after dropping their initial assignment against Phoenix. Justin Brownlee has remained solid with a double-double average of nearly 25 points and 11 rebounds per game, while the frontline tandem of Japeth Aguilar and Joe Devance has withstood the bigger imports of other teams. Coach Tim has his unit humming, and they will need all the momentum they can gather as they prep for San Miguel Beer on May 21. Before then, they should be favored against the Aces and Painters.

3 - Meralco Bolts (6-1) -same-
- A token loss to SMB didn't dampen the Bolts' spirits. They bounced back with two straight triumphs over Alaska and Blackwater, further securing their hold at second place in the league table. The rise of Baser Amer has maybe been the biggest factor affecting Meralco's improved performance this conference, though one cannot look past the resurgence of Jared Dillinger and the steady production of of Alex Stepheson. They will have a bit of a tough sked, though, with the Fuel Masters next week to be followed by Star and GlobalPort.

4 - TNT KaTropa (5-2) -down 2 spots-
- TNT is still in great shape this conference, though that loss to Ginebra surely stung and will seriously jeopardize their chances of finishing among the top two seeds. They also need to get ready fast as they will have a titanic tussle with San Miguel on May 5. As deep as TNT has been, they have never really been able to consistently solve the SMB puzzle yet this season (they are 3-5 against the Beermen), so a win will do wonders for their confidence. Also, they just traded Matt Rosser in exchange for RR Garcia, so that should make things extra interesting.

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5 - Star Hotshots (5-2) -up 1 spot-
- Losing back to back to Ginebra and San Miguel Beer was kind of expected, but they recovered nicely with a W over the Elite. That means Star is still within striking distance of a top two spot, though the odds aren't in their favor by any stretch. There's still a cloud hanging over Tony Mitchell, but at least the locals have been producing. Allein Maliksi has been nothing if not efficient, while Jio Jalalon has made Mark Barroca and Paul Lee quake in their boots for losing playing time. Don't sleep on how far the Hotshots can go this conference.

6 - Alaska Aces (4-2) -up 1 spot-
- Sure, Alaska has lost two in a row, and their next two games are punishing (Ginebra and then TNT), but the Aces have long been considered one of the league's best "against all odds" clubs, and I am sure coach Alex Compton will find a way to squeeze as much as he can from his Aces. Alaska could end up as high as a top three team or as low as among the bottom four, but it's never smart to bet against these guys.

7 - Phoenix Fuel Masters (3-4) -up 3 spots-
- Recent losses to SMB and ROS hurt, but wins against powerhouse Ginebra and top tier club Alaska have boosted Phoenix's chances of making a run at the quarterfinals. It will be very interesting to see if Matthew Wright can keep shooting well, while it's also going to be exciting to see if JC Intal can continue to put up big numbers. Of course, much of their fate is carried by import Jameel McKay, who has been a beast in every sense of the word.

8 - GlobalPort Batang Pier (2-5) -up 1 spot-
- Starting the conference 0-4 was sour, but the Batang Pier have rebounded well, winning two of their last three. And, sure, they won over the bottom two teams in the standings, but that should give them enough of a push to be threats in their next few encounters, which are against Phoenix, Meralco, and Rain or Shine — all of whom are beatable as long as Von Pessumal stays hot, Stanley Pringle continues his heavy production, and Terrence Romeo fully recovers his health.

9 - Rain or Shine Elasto-Painters (4-3) -down 2 spots-
- A red-hot 3-0 start to the conference has all but been forgotten after the Painters lost three of their last four. A win against Phoenix gave ROS a good respite, but this team really needs to get its act together to secure a quarterfinal berth. That means consistency from guys like Shawn Taggart, Jeff Chan, and James Yap, while some other guys like Jay Washington, Gabe Norwood, Beau Belga, and Maverick Ahanmisi need to step up.

10 - Blackwater Elite (1-6) -down 2 spots-
- The Elite haven't been playing well, which is understandable considering they aren't enjoying the services of their top two forwards, but there is something to say about guys like Roi Sumang, Kyle Pascual, Ronjay Buenafe, and Reil Cervantes trying to carry the cudgels. Only herculean efforts from import Greg Smith, however, will really be able to propel Blackwater to a quarterfinal spot, and, realistically speaking, it's unlikely they will win majority of their last four elims assignments (NLEX, Mahindra, Ginebra, and SMB).

11 - Mahindra Floodbuster (1-7) -same-
- Mahindra is one of the coldest teams around, losing their last five outings. They remain mired with NLEX at the bottom of the pile, and even if they win all their remaining games (Blackwater, Phoenix, and Ginebra), they wouldn't be assured of a top eight slot. That's a shame, of course, considering how well guys like Alex Mallari and Reden Celda have played.

12 - NLEX Road Warriors (0-7) -same-
- It's understandable how coach Yeng Guiao is frustrated. His is not the shallowest roster in the league. I mean, he has promising players like Kevin Alas, Brad Guinto, Garvo Lanete, and Carlo Lastimosa. He has great veterans in Sean Anthony, Asi Taulava, and Jonas Villanueva. His import, Wayne Chism, has been rock-solid. So what gives? NLEX just hasn't found its identity yet, and until they do, the whoel will always be less than the sum of all its talented moving parts.