PBA - why I lost interest watching

The PBA (Philippine Basketball Association) is the professional basketball league of the Philippines.  Prior to that, it was known as MICAA (Manila Inter-Commercial Athletic Association) andI was really a big fan until its transition to PBA.  The transition saw the league turn into something like the NBA.  The sad thing is the PBA even imitated the NBA Logo!  The good thing is that the players were not imitating NBA players on their moves, shots and passes during those days.  The last time I remember watching a full PBA game was when Vergel Meneses, Alan Caidic, Alvin Patrimonio, Jojo Lastimosa, Johnny Abarrientos and the likes were still active.

Since that time, I hear from my sons that several new players of the PBA were trying hard copycats of NBA players!  Another thing, the tall Filipino players who play the position of "Center" are not even being trained on ball handling!  I have heard before and still hear now from some coaches and trainers telling these tall guys to just focus on rebounding and blocking and forget about ball handling!  That's the reason why the Philippines has not improved and even retrogressed in the sport compared to their status before the 1970s.

They've also imitated the NBA in focusing in defense.  In defense there are many flaws especially in height compared to other nations.  Also, players get fouls and give opportunities to opponents to get free throws!  The Filipino coaches should focus on offense and high scoring.  No matter how good they can defend, if they can not shoot and score, they still lose.  One more false belief is they call high percentage shots those that are closer to the basket.  Nonsense!  The closer a player shoots near the basket the more defenders there are and its more crowded!  And, shorter players will need superman skills to make their shots good!

Even TV commentators are taken for a ride by foolish if not stupid moves!  They commend and appreciate moves that are not necessary!  One example is:  They talk about a no-look pass by a player who does it just for show.  No one guarding him and likewise no one guarding the pass recipient!  Commentators even tag those players as elite!  What's wrong with all those guys?!?

Pacquiao vs. Mosley

May 7, 2011 will be another day to remember in the boxing world.  Shane Mosley will be in the ring for WBO Welterweight title held by Manny "Pacman" Pacquiao.  It cannot be said if this will be the toughest fight ever for Pacquiao.  His fights against Oscar dela Hoya, Clottey, Hatton, Cotto and Margarito were supposed to be tough but it seems that he just breezed through them.  He never really got in trouble in those previous fights.

Pacquiao who was born December 17, 1978 is now 33 years old while Mosley is 39.  He may have slight youth advantage of 6 years over Mosley, nevertheless Shane still proved his stamina and power against Mayweather.  Manny Pacquiao says that he is 100% in condition but claims he did not train as hard as he did against dela Hoya.  If he would not be able to get Mosley in trouble and the fight will go the distance, there might be just that slight chance of him losing.

If Manny Pacquiao can move as well as he did in previous fights, Mosley will have a difficult time catching him with strong punches.  Or, if he does go after Pacquiao moving around the ring his stamina will be sacrificed.  The best thing that Mosley can do is to frequently corner Manny along the ropes.  Whoever will be quickest and be able to land real hard punches can come out the winner by either knockout or unanimous decision.

Pacquiao gives away $135,000.00 in contest

A little over 3 weeks ago before Manny "Pacman" Pacquiao's bout with Clottey, he sponsored a 3-week contest in the USA for participants who would be able to reduce or shed weight significantly.  He offered to give anyone $20,000.00 who would be able to do this.  It was dubbed as Pacman’s "Biggest Loser" challenge.

The rule here is for participants to lose 15 percent of their body weight within the 3-week period. Participated in by 87 personnel and friends close to Pacquiao, 38 of them were able to meet the test and took home $3,000 each, bringing Pacquiao’s total prize close to $135,000 equivalent to P6,300,000.00, Philippine currency.

 

American Tim Sladeck, came out to be the best man in the weight loss challenge, won the top prize of $20,000 for losing the most in weight during the three-week contest .  He lost a total of 49 pounds, from 214 pounds to 165 pounds.  This is equivalent to shedding 22.5% of his body weight.

With this, there would be many again who would criticize him of giving away so much money for a contest that  benefited other than his countrymen.  Anyway, the newsbrief did not mention how many of the participants were his country men and how many of the 38 recipients of $3,000 were Filipinos.

Manny Pacquiao vs Joshua Clottey

The Manny Pacquiao vs Joshua Clottey fight is upcoming. This should be a difficult fight to pre-judge because Clottey in his fight against Cotto seemed to be a better fighter. The Pacman also stated that he thinks Clottey should have won that fight.
Having watched the Cotto-Clottey match I also think that Clottey won the fight. Cotto had a real difficult time and that could have told, then, he would have the same difficulty in the match with with Pacquiao which he eventually lost.

Now for the March 14, 2010 bout between Pacquiao and Clottey, it seems it will be a close fight. Both fighters show to have the stamina. The question is: Who will be throwing the harder and damaging punches? Both of them hit hard, but basing on their fights against Cotto, Pacquiao did more damage and obviously dominated the fight. Clottey was not able to show dominance over Cotto. He was not able to do as much damage that Pacquiao did.

The fight will be a toss up, slightly in favor of Pacquiao. Clottey will have to do a lot better than he did against Cotto or else he could be a goner.

Pacquiao-Cotto Firepower Analysis

Manny "Pacman" Pacquiao Analysis

1. He came from the 108 lb. division and now at 140 lbs plus welterweight division.
2. Most of his fights in heavier divisions were abbreviated or short. A question if he could last 12 rounds in those weights.
3. He moved up to next higher weights without defending the titles he won.
4. He seems to move around the ring better than Cotto.
5. It will be observed in their pictorial that his clenched fist is about 1/3 larger than Cottos. Given that the gloves have the same padding thickness his punch will deliver a harder blow.
   
6. He is vulnerable to counter-punching. (As proven in his fights against Barrera)

Miguel Cotto Analysis

1. He is a natural welterweight and has proven his worth fighting and defending his title in that division.
2. His fight against Mosley shows he can take really hard punches and not bothered.
3. His "killer instinct" is similar to that of Muhammad Ali. He senses when his opponent is about to come down.
4. His build is natural while Pacquiao gained weight while developing his built.
5. His smaller fist might denote speed but could lack impact for knocking down or knocking out an opponent.
6. His stance with both hands covering the face and elbows open is an opportunity for an opponent to go for his abdomen or uppercut.

The "Ifs" of the Fight:

• If in the first 4 rounds neither of them hurts the other considerably, it could go the distance but could be in Cottos favor as a natural welterweight.
• The first 4 rounds could favor Pacquiao because of his larger fist that would have a stronger or harder impact.
• If both get hurt equally in the first 4 rounds, Pacquiaos larger fist could be in his favor as it would deal a heavier blow.
• If any of them get weakened in the first 6 rounds, the stronger would prevail. Both have will power but stamina will have a big role. This could be in favor of Cotto as shown in his fight with Mosley.
• If both fighters will be too careful and avoid getting hurt, it will last the whole 12 rounds and decision will be close. A draw or split decision is possible.
• If after 8 rounds both are worn out, the referee should look closely for possible head butts that could end the fight prematurely.
• If they will both be moving around the ring all throughout with lesser punches thrown at each other, it might become a boring championship fight. (Nobody would care who wins or loses)
  
• Finally, anyone of them who would know how reserve their "firepower" until the last few rounds will prevail either via knockout or points.
  

RP Boxing Champions

Donaire and Viloria became instant hits and heroes in the Philippine sports of boxing. I don't recall, if any, something similar to this in the past. Their wins were very convincing even with the under cards that won against non-Filipino opponents.

It was just sad that no matter what channel I tried to look for their televised fight, there was none! I have set that date to watch their fights. Do they need to be Pacquiaos first before full live fight is given coverage by television stations? What if the the Pacman falls in his fight with Hatton? Would these TV stations be scrambling for rights in the future fights of Donaire and Viloria?

It has been that way for Filipino TV stations. Not even a single station was able to air those fights! It was like that then . . . sorry to say . . . it's still the same way now! Okay! So, Donaire and Viloria . . . be ready to up your "ante" if and when Pacquiao fails to win against Hatton!

On Manny Pacquiao Again

First my apologies again for this article not being a "before and now". . .

This is in disgust for the "pacman". I have admired Manny Pacquiao for his achievements but lost all that admiration and respect after switching over to ABS-CBN for the right of airing his fight against Ricky Hatton. His excuse, even if it will be valid, that payment to him by Solar Sports is delayed, is a greedy excuse! He is earning so much that probably the delay will not make him any poorer or put him in trouble! He displays himself as a religious person but that only shows that he is only good for words and not in deeds!

His being famous worldwide will now have a question of what kind of a person he really is, for many people. It makes me laugh more now with his ambition to enter politics again. Why would anyone vote him when he does not respect his contracts? He did not even bother informing Solar Sports about it!

Even if retracts his committment with ABS-CBN, my admiration of him will not return. He has already shown his true color. A greedy person! I hope his sponsors will drop him

The Almighty will give him a lesson. He could lose his fight with Hatton because this will hang in his head until the fight. He will not see many punches that will be thrown at him.

To Filipinos, please do not vote for him if ever he runs for any government position.

My vision was OFF!

OK so my vision was wrong on the then and now for the Pacquiao-dela Hoya Dream Match. It was a very easy win for Manny Pacquiao. Oscar dela Hoya didn't even seem to be a threat at all to the "Pacman"! He looked impressive during the weigh-in showing his "pandesal" abs! But that was all looks - no performance at all during the fight. He was just tapping at Manny! They were not even legitimate jabs! He was just annoying the Pacman.

If I remember right, the Golden Boy then wanted to be the promoter of Pacquiao. There was a controversial contract signing that Manny has denied because it was signed by someone in his camp. Eventually, I believe, the contract was not good and did not go in effect. Getting the contract to be null and void would have had some costs involved before and after. Probably more on the the side of Oscar "Golden Boy" dela Hoya. (Anyone reading this see where I am leading to?) So, there must have been some way for both parties to recover lost expenses. My guess is as good as yours! There is some pride involved in it, also before and after. But who cares about the pride? They are in for the money and nothing more! The Golden Boy blamed Roach when he lost to Mayweather, did he recover that pride going against the Pacman? Off course not! He "threw in the towel" even before the fight was to continue! It was a plain fact that he already earned the money, forget about the pride in retaining or regaining the title and who wants to get hurt more for the same money?

The fight of Pacquiao-Diaz was true to the last punch. Diaz fought gallantly although he was being battered by Pacquiao. Manny Pacquiao always did his best in training and the results always showed in his fights. Oscar dela Hoya said he prepared more than he ever did in any of his previous fights. His abs showed the results but not for his performance.

Manny Pacquiao fought according to his skill. Oscar dela Hoya did not fight to the skill that people know him for. I would have cheered loudly if he fell down face first like Diaz. Manny fought someone who just wanted "his money" back.

The End for the Pacman?

This would be an off-topic of then and now, but I felt that Manny Pacquiao might become then and would be now after his fight with Oscar dela Hoya.

3 or 4 months back from this date, it just came to me that the results of the fight will not be in favor of Manny Pacquiao. I wanted to blog about it but I don't know how it just came as a vision while I was awake. I was not watching TV or doing anything. Some sort of a vision or picture came in my mind out of nowhere of his beaten and bloodied face. I tried to watch all his previous fights and I did not see one that had that much beaten and bloodied face.

He was awesome and outstanding in his last fight against David Diaz because their height is almost the same. His win against Juan Manuel Marquez had cast some doubts in it. Against Eric Morales there were doubts on the condition of Morales having cut down much weight in short period.

His giving away of tickets worth millions and turkey for thanksgiving lately seems to be a premonition for the Pacman of what is about to come. Is it some sort of a "farewell" or "good-bye"? I believe he did nothing similar to this in his previous fights.

By the way I am not "seer" or a fortune teller. I just felt the need to post what I experienced for whatever worth it is or will be. I am for Manny Pacquiao to win his fight against Oscar dela Hoya. I believe in his skills but height does really matter in boxing.

UPDATE (11/28/08): Pacquiao giving up WBC Lightweight Crown? Is this another sign? He had more difficult fights in lower divisions! Yes, he overwhelmed Diaz but did he fight anyone else in that division? He's saying he's more comfortable now at 140 to 147!

Sports & Youth

In my younger days from the 60s to early 80s, I really loved sports. I played dodge ball, roller skates, some softball, chess, basketball, table tennis, lawn tennis, billiards, pool, some soccer, volleyball, badminton, pelota, duck-pin and Ten-Pin Bowling. The only sports facilities that we had to pay for were billiards, pool, duck-pin and ten-pin bowling. But they were relatively cheap because we were the youth then and could afford it. In our city, there was little concern about crime because the youth had practically many sports to engage in for free. It was only those not interested in sports that went into drugs and frat or gang like activities.


All around our city there were a lot of basketball courts from gyms to open-air standard full courts down to street half-courts. There were sub-standard sized courts to even smaller ones that players use smaller balls like tennis balls. We sometimes play for long hours until our strength is drained without worrying for the cost of using of the facility. The same free use could be said of volleyball, table and lawn tennis.


Probably since the mid-1980s until now, all of those free facilities are already pay-for-use facilities. The hourly rate is quite high that only well-off people could afford to use them frequently for two hours or more. It is sad to see many youth these days who want to be in sports but could not afford it anymore. This is one of the many reasons why the youth now have turned to cheaper computer games, use of drugs and gang activities. It is really a sad combination of seeing the past in your mind while seeing the present with your eyes.