Stars on the rise

Adamson’s Encho Serrano and Ateneo’s Sam Jose (SJ) Belangel won’t be playing at the fourth annual Slam Rising Stars Classic in the Gatorade Hoops Center on Shaw Boulevard this Sunday but 24 other top high school basketball players are showing up to deliver a strong statement that the country’s junior program continues to get stronger year after year.

Serrano and Belangel would’ve been shoo-ins for the event but organizers opted to exclude two of the UAAP’s shiningest stars. Serrano was involved in an eligibility dispute this season and was disqualified after 12 games where he led the league in MVP statistical points. The disqualification was heartless and smacked of the UAAP Board’s continuing disregard for basic human rights to protect partisan interests. A source said the organizers excluded Serrano to conform to the UAAP ruling in what had to be a political decision. Including Serrano would’ve risked straining a relationship with the UAAP and organizers need to be on the league’s good side to draft players for the yearly event.

As for Belangel, the scuttlebutt is his exclusion was a commercial decision since the Rising Stars teams are outfitted by a brand that is the chief market rival of what the Ateneo star is endorsing. Isn’t it a pity that high school players are commercially tied up to contracts with the consent of their parents, of course? In the US, high school and collegiate players are prohibited from entering into personal commercial deals or endorsements although there is no ban on their teams signing deals.

It would’ve been quite a coup if Sunday’s blockbuster featured Serrano and Belangel. But UAAP MVP Juan Gomez de Liano of UP, NCAA MVP Troy Mallillim of La Salle Greenhills and 22 others should make the game more than interesting despite their absence. Scouts will be in the stands evaluating the graduating seniors who’ve so far not committed to any school for seniors play. The word is John Lloyd Clemente of NU, Kenji Roman of FEU and Martin Romero of La Salle Zobel are still up for grabs although it’s not likely they’ll leave their mother schools. Among the players who’ve made commitments are Mallillin for La Salle, Unique Naboa for St. Benilde and Gomez de Liano for UP. Chiang Kai Shek’s Jonas Tibayan was the prized catch in a tug-of-war involving several schools and it seems like he’s finally chosen to enrol at Ateneo. Arellano’s Carlo Abadeza and Guilmer de la Torre, NU’s Karl Penano and Mapua’s Jasper Salenga have played out their junior eligibility but are incoming Grade 12 students so they’ll sit out another year before moving to the seniors unless they secure a PEP certificate from the Department of Education declaring their college eligibility as high school graduates.

The opposing teams are called Punks, coached by former PBA MVP Willie Miller assisted by La Salle Zobel’s Gian Nazario, and Hype coached by Alaska’s Tony de la Cruz assisted by Ateneo’s Joe Silva. 

The complete lineups are for Punks – 6-3 Sam Abu Hijleh of San Beda, 6-2 Clemente, 5-8 De la Torre, 6-5 Aaron Fermin of Arellano, 6-3 Dave Ildefonso of Ateneo, 6-3 Mallillin, 5-8 Naboa, 5-11 Miguel Oczon of Chiang Kai Shek, 6-1 Harvey Pagsanjan of Hope Christian, 6-4 Penano, 6-1 Roman and 6-0 Salenga and for Hype – 6-4 Abadeza, 6-4 Rhayyan Amsali of NU, 5-10 L. J. Gonzales of FEU, 5-11 Winderlich Coyoca of NU, 6-1 Gomez de Liano, 6-6 Will Gozum of Mapua, 5-7 Rom Junsay of Mapua, 6-5 Germy Mahinay of San Beda, 6-4 Robert Minerva of Chiang Kai Shek, 5-11 Romero, 6-0 Joshua Tagala of San Beda and 6-3 Tibayan.

The players’ age range is from 16 to 18. To show how big the new generation of players is, not a single one from the roster of 24 wears a shoe size smaller than 11. Fermin and Mahinay top the list with size 15.

The race for MVP honors in Sunday’s classic should be a humdinger. Last year, Clemente shot a game-high 23 points for Team Hype but the trophy went to Aljun Melecio who collected 12 points, four rebounds and two assists to lead Team Punks to a 103-98 win. Clemente will be out to claim the award that was nearly his last year. Aside from Clemente, others who are returning to play in the Slam Rising Stars showcase are Abu Hijleh, Pagsanjan, Roman, Tibayan, Abadeza, De la Torre and Gomez de Liano. The inaugural MVP was Hubert Cani in Hype’s 93-90 win and two players, J. V. Gallego and JBoy Gob, shared MVP honors in the second event won by Team Punks, 103-95.