Freeman reports for Barako

It’s not often that an import winds up scoreless in a PBA game unless he’s a lemon or injured or just plain disinterested.

Last Sunday, Barako Bull import Chukwunike (please call me Reggie) Okosa went 0-of-7 from the field and never took a free throw in going zero in 11 forgettable first half minutes as coach Junel Baculi bit the bullet, regrouped his forces and did the unimaginable to shock Alaska, 103-90, in Game 1 of their best-of-three quarterfinal series in the Commissioner’s Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

From the onset, Baculi said he didn’t need an import to play the middle because with Dorian Peña and Mick Pennisi, the team has two solid wide bodies to defend the post. So the Bulls brought in DerMarr Johnson then Rodney White to fill the bill. Both are inside-outside players – more like forwards than centers – with NBA veteran smarts. As first round NBA draft picks, they boasted a wealth of experience. Playing under pressure was nothing new to them.

Johnson didn’t last very long in the PBA as Barako got off to a dismal 1-4 mark. Johnson erupted for 37 points against Air21 but the Bulls still lost a 97-88 decision last Feb. 19. Then, he hurt his groin, finishing with only three points in a 99-93 loss to Rain Or Shine last Feb. 23. In came White to the rescue. Baculi kept Johnson in the reserve list just in case White didn’t work out and he got better.

White didn’t do badly, leading Barako to a 3-2 mark and towing the team straight to the quarterfinals. But he had issues. After exploding for 41 points in a win over Petron, he quietly netted 19 in a loss to Barangay Ginebra as if to prod Barako to let him go. White claimed he had to go back to the US to attend to an ailing father. It’s not sure if he spoke with forked tongue. Imports who want to take off at midstream usually cite a personal reason, the most common being a sick relative. It’s useless to keep an import against his wishes – he won’t give you 100 percent on the floor anyway and he’ll hold his team hostage. To give White the benefit of the doubt, Barako allowed him a leave of absence and placed him on the reserve list for possible reactivation sometime in the playoffs. White left for the US last March 26, the day after the loss to Ginebra. Baculi said he was told White might return last Friday in time for Game 1 against Alaska. But White never showed up. Okosa, meanwhile, came in as an interim replacement last March 27 and suited up last Sunday.

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Okosa, 31, has played in leagues all over the world and wouldn’t have been considered to play for Barako if he didn’t show creditable credentials. In 2005, he played on the Dodge City squad that captured the USBL crown and three years later, suited up for Dongbu Promy that won the Korean league title. But against the Aces, Okosa was a poor excuse for an import. He was so bad that Baculi benched him the entire second half and still managed to pick up the win.

The last time an import failed to score a single point in the PBA was in the third place playoff in the 2008 Fiesta Conference between Magnolia and Red Bull. NBA veteran Amal McCaskill was scoreless in five minutes for Magnolia as Red Bull, powered by Adam Parada, won, 102-90. McCaskill was a second round NBA draft pick in 1996 and had played for Orlando, San Antonio, Atlanta and Philadelphia but that night against Red Bull, he laid a fat egg.

In Game 2 against Alaska tonight, Barako will parade comebacking Gabe Freeman as Okosa’s replacement. Freeman arrived from the East Coast last night. Freeman is no newcomer to the PBA style of play. He averaged 23 points in 24 games for San Miguel in 2009 and 21.6 points in 29 games, also for the Beermen, the next year. Freeman, 26, led San Miguel to the Fiesta Conference championship in his first PBA tour of duty.

Baculi said depending on Freeman’s measurement and performance in the Commissioner’s Cup, he may be retained for the Third Conference which starts May 20. The Governors Cup will set a height ceiling of 6-5 for imports. Freeman is listed 6-6.

Freeman, who only played for a junior college (Costa Mesa in Arizona) and was never drafted in the NBA, is fresh from bagging playoff MVP honors in the inaugural season of the Canadian National Basketball League. He paced the London Lighting to a 3-2 win over the Halifax Rainmen in the best-of-five finals that ended last March 25. In the clincher, Freeman fired 22 points on 9-of-12 from the floor and 4-of-4 free throws in 32 minutes as London crushed Halifax, 116-92, before close to 6,000 wildly cheering fans at the John Labatt Centre in London, Ontario.

Freeman wound up averaging 18.1 points and 12.2 rebounds in 42 games with the Lightning whose coach was NBA veteran Micheal Ray Richardson. Freeman shot .537 from two-point range, .275 from three-point distance and .710 from the line. His season high was 34 points against Moncton last Dec. 3.

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 “We’ve got a shot at making it to the semis,” said Baculi. “In Game 1, our guys wanted to prove something. They knew what to do, they’ve been in the playoffs before. The good thing is they’re willing to sacrifice. We’ve got guys who are enjoying rejuvenated careers. Limiting Parada to 11 points was a big factor. We can’t match up against Parada one-on-one because he’s so big so we adjusted to a man-zone, collapsing on him with help when he’s in position to score. Dorian and Mick also did a good job on him.”

Baculi said he could’ve used Sunday Salvacion in his rotation but the three-point specialist is still nursing a hamstring injury and will be reactivated next conference possibly with Marc Agustin.

In Barako’s win last Sunday, five Bulls scored in double figures with Ronald Tubid chalking up 24, Danny Seigle 21, Don Allado (renamed Alla-bow) 16, Willie Miller 14 and Leo Najorda 12.  Allado buried a desperation buzzer-beating triple from midcourt to end the half and quickly genuflected to pose like football’s Tim Tebow. Allado ended up with nine rebounds in 22 minutes of relief action.