RP 5 to draft imports for Champions Cup

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippine developmental team will be reinforced by two imports in the FIBA-Asia Champions Cup in Jakarta on May 12-20 and SBP executive director Noli Eala said yesterday one of them could be former Red Bull import Adam Parada.

The tournament allows teams to play two imports of unlimited height each. Eala said he has the go-signal from SBP president Manny V. Pangilinan to recruit a pair that will make the team more competitive.

“We’re in touch with Parada’s agent,” said Eala. “He’s got an offer to play in the Middle East but he’d rather play for us. He knows the international game. If we come to terms, we’ll bring him to Las Vegas for our training camp.”

The 7-foot, 265-pound Parada, 27, played for the Mexican national team in the 2007 FIBA Americas Championships in Las Vegas, averaging 12.9 points and 5.5 rebounds. In Mexico’s 127-100 loss to the US, Parada was matched up against Dwight Howard and collected 17 points, seven rebounds and three assists in 23 minutes. Parada scored 21 points and shot .727 from the floor in Mexico’s 100-89 win over Venezuela.

In the PBA Fiesta Conference last year, Parada netted 33 points as Red Bull downed Magnolia, 102-90, to take third place. He averaged 21.2 points, 14.6 rebounds and 2.9 blocked shots in 23 games.

Eala said Parada’s import partner could be coach Rajko Toroman’s son-in-law Mladen Sekulavac, a 6-8 forward who was the Dallas Mavericks’ second round pick in the 2002 NBA draft. Sekulavac, 28, has played for the Yugoslavian national junior team and is a fixture in the Serbian league.

“Mladen came to Manila for a visit recently and practiced with our team,” said Eala. “He’s a deadshot from any angle. He reminds you of Peja Stojakovic. When he releases, it’s almost always a sure hit. Coach Chot (Reyes) saw him play and he thinks a Parada-Mladen combination will work. But we’re not rushing a decision. We’ve got players showing up for tryouts in Las Vegas so we’ll evaluate the talent that’s available before making up our minds.”

The developmental team is now in Serbia for a seven-game exhibition series. Last Sunday, Serbian Division I club Vujiv Metalac Valjevo trounced the visitors, 92-61. Mark Barroca led the Philippines with 19 points. Mac Baracael chipped in 15, Dylan Ababou 7 and J. V. Casio 6.

“We missed our outside shots and our big guys (Greg) Slaughter and (Jason) Ballesteros didn’t score,” said Eala. “The game was very physical. The Serbians were pushing us out. Our guys realized it’s a totally different game from what they’re used to.”

Eala said the team’s second game was a cliffhanger. Another Serbian Division I club OKK Beograd edged the Philippines, 90-87, at the Pionir Sports Center in downtown Belgrade last Tuesday.

“We played against taller and heftier Serbian pros but we did much better than our first game and lost because of breaks in the end game,” said Eala. “We showed marked improvement with more precise passing, use of effective screens, a higher field goal percentage, better defense, less turnovers and more patience in our execution.”

Eala said the Philippines hit 12-of-15 triples and almost scored an upset. Ababou shot 16 points, Casio 15, Chris Tiu 14, Slaughter 11 and Baracael 9.

Neither Parada nor Sekulavac is eligible for naturalization because they had previously suited up for other national teams. Under FIBA rules, a player may see action for only one country in his international career.