Sporting Chance

How did Alaska fare in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) last year?

First, the good news. Alaska was the only team to qualify for the semis in each conference.

Then, the bad news. Alaska failed to win a single title, breaking a 5-year streak in which the Milkmen bagged at least a championship in a season.

No doubt, Alaska was the most dominant PBA franchise in the '90s - making it to 15 Finals in 30 conferences (excluding the 1998 bonus Centennial Cup) and capturing nine diadems.

But like the Boston Celtics and the Chicago Bulls in the National Basketball Association (NBA), the Alaska dynasty couldn't last forever. Coach Tim Cone, however, is optimistic that Alaska will bounce back strong. His goal is to pocket another Grand Slam - Alaska did it in 1996 - this year.

"We'll reach for the stars and maybe, settle for less," said Cone. "We'll try to make it to the semis of every conference - that'll bring us closer to the Finals. We'll try to be more efficient in executing the triangle, adjusting a twitch here and there. We'll definitely be competitive. If some Fil-Ams don't get to play, we'll be very competitive. As you know, the Fil-Ams brought the league to a higher level of play last year. Without them, we would've been extremely strong."

Cone noted that Alaska had a relatively positive 1999 campaign despite failing to pick up a title.

"I was surprised we didn't win a single championship because it really wasn't a bad year for us," he continued. "We were the only team to make it to three straight semis. It was tough getting to the semis because of the format. It was difficult to come back from a slow start. Still, we finished in the top four of each conference - that's an accomplishment. We weren't too far away from winning a title. In the All-Filipino semis, we ran into Tanduay which was extremely motivated. I thought Tanduay would win the title - that's why I admire (Shell coach) Perry (Ronquillo) a lot because of what he did in the Finals. In the Second Conference semis, we were up, 2-1, over San Miguel but blew two chances to reach the Finals. And in the Third Conference, we were up again, 2-1, over San Miguel in the Finals before we imploded."

Last Wednesday, Alaska opened training camp. Johnny Abarrientos and Edward Juinio showed up in excellent shape. Cone said the Flying A has lost six to eight pounds and reduced his body fat to six percent.

"Johnny felt he was a little heavy last year and it affected his quickness," Cone added. "As for Edward, now that he's a little older, I guess he realizes the importance of starting the season in shape. In the past, he often reported to camp overweight."

Jojo Lastimosa and Roel Gomez are gone - they were traded to Pop Cola. Alaska's recruits are Brixter Encarnacion and Roel Buenaventura. Trying out for spots are Bulo Lim, Kevin Ramas, Joey Loyzaga, Joey Valdes, and rookie Glenn Yap. Veteran Al David hasn't reported for practice but is expected to try out, too.

James Wallkvist, whose contract has expired, bid Alaska farewell to join the Metropolitan Basketball Association (MBA) a few weeks back. He was promised a long-term contract with a monthly salary of about P320,000 - close to double his Alaska paycheck. But the other day, Wallkvist was back at Alaska. Apparently, the MBA offer hit a snag. The same thing happened to Gomez who was similarly offered a juicy contract to jump to the MBA. The deal for Gomez also fell through.

"Roel had a live contract with us," explained Cone. "When he got a 3-year offer from the MBA, I was happy for Roel and allowed him to go. It was the same with James. Now, our salary cap is filling up. We eventually traded Roel and we still don't know how to make room for James. We'd like James back but it will be for a lot less than what he was initially offered in the MBA."

Cone said Encarnacion and Buenaventura are still learning his system. "It's too soon to tell if they'll be comfortable with the triangle," he went on. "Brix is a great athlete with good size and can play two or three. I see him playing with Rodney (Santos) and Kenneth (Duremdes) on the floor. Buenaventura can play four or five but he's raw. He could've used another year in the UAAP. He'll need to work harder. One thing, he's got potential. Will they adjust easily to the triangle? Some guys take to it like water. Others wander in the desert before finding the water, like Rodney who took about eight months to adjust. Kenneth, on the other hand, was comfortable from the first day."

Lastimosa's departure, sighed Cone, signaled the end of an era.

"Jojo was our dominant personality for so long," noted Cone. "He was more than just a player to us, he was a confidante. It was more than a player-coach relationship with us. If we had a team problem or crisis, we called in Jojo. He'll miss his teammates and his teammates will miss him. He's the ultimate teammate. If he had a choice, he would've stayed. We tried to move players to open up room in our cap for Jojo but nothing worked. So we looked for a situation where Jojo could get the respect, role, and contract he deserves."

Cone disclosed that San Miguel Beer and Pop Cola pursued Lastimosa intently.

"It was Jojo's choice," he said. "Jojo liked San Miguel's winning tradition and the role he was offered. But in the end, he picked Pop Cola because of his friendship with (coach) Chot (Reyes). He did it to support Chot - that's what Jojo is all about, loyalty and friendship."

Cone said practice just doesn't seem the same without Lastimosa. "We're struggling without Jojo," he admitted. "We miss him. Who'll take his place as our leader? Johnny, Kenneth, Bong (Hawkins) or Edward - I expect anyone of them to step up. But we're lucky that we've got five to six solid weeks to prepare for the All-Filipino, unlike in the previous years, where we had just two to three.

Cone noted that Jun Reyes will be back as playing assistant coach. "Jun's special - he's the best backup for Johnny," he pointed out. Dickie Bachmann and Luigi Trillo will be full-time assistants.

"I hired Luigi - his father had nothing to do with it," stressed Cone, referring to team manager Joaqui Trillo. "I battled Joaqui to do it. Joaqui didn't think it was a good idea because people might say he used his influence to hire his son. I've known Luigi two to three years now. He's a super kid with a knack for coaching. He's well connected to the MBA and UAAP. He was in the Cebu Gems staff in the MBA Finals last year."

A bright spot is Don Allado. "He'll be the cornerstone of our franchise at some point," said Cone. "It was unfair for us to play Don so much in the Third Conference but he did well. He's the kind of big man we've never had before. He's just barely scratched the surface of his potential - I'm excited to see what he'll do for us this year. But he's got to get in shape. He reported to camp 10 pounds overweight."

Cone stayed in town during the holidays to work on his roster. He would've gone to Hawaii to visit his sister, Julie, whose husband passed away last November. Cone's brother-in-law died at 52 four weeks after he was diagnosed to be suffering from pancreatic cancer. He left behind his wife and two children, a 7-year-old and a 2-year-old.

"I'm the youngest in the family and Julie's the closest to me in age," said Cone. "We were devastated by her husband's loss. Maybe, we'll visit if we get a break this year."

Expect a big rebound from Alaska this season.