College basketball leagues, particularly the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) and the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), have been and continue to be premier suppliers of national players. These two leagues, which Fullcourtfresh.com has been religiously covering since 2010, produced six of the 12 members of the 2013 Gilas Pilipinas team, which recently won the silver medal of the recent FIBA Asia Championship and booked a seat for next year’s Madrid FIBA World Championship.

Three of the silver Gilas boys came from Ateneo–LA Tenorio and Larry Fonacier of the 2002 UAAP champion team, and Japeth Aguilar who played for the Blue and White from 2004 to 2005 before transferring abroad to play for West Kentucky University in the US NCAA. Two wore the Green and Gold jersey of the Far Eastern University–Jeff Chan of the 2005 UAAP champion team and the then unheralded Marc Pingris, who briefly played for the Tamaraws in 1999 before transferring to the Philippine School of Business Administration.

A lone Gilas member hailed from the NCAA — Jayson Castro William — who played for the now-defunct Philippine Christian University Dolphins champion team in 2004. He is the lone Pinoy awardee in the 2013 Fiba Asiad, being the tournament’s best point guard in the Mythical Five.

Meanwhile, Gary David may be considered an honorary NCAA alumnus in the national team. He played for Lyceum of the Philippines during its National Capital Region Athletic Association (NCRAA) heyday in the late ‘90s. The Pirates from Intramuros are now on its third year of probation in the NCAA.

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If there were six UAAP-NCAA alumni from the 2013 Gilas, why can’t the two leagues provide its men to the next batches of Gilas Pilipinas?

In this this week’s edition of From The 15th Parallel, I have selected six current cagers, three each from the UAAP and NCAA, who may have the biggest chance of playing for flag and country.

First up is the trio that comprises of the current UAAP stars:

 

Bobby Ray Parks

The reigning two-time MVP (MVP) may have been experiencing a mini-slump in terms of scoring and shooting, but his National University team has posted its best standing so far in the UAAP with a 5-3 record with six games left in Season 76.

He has the skills, leadership, size, and pedigree to boast and the national team needs a multi-dimensional wing player like him.

In comparison: Larry Fonacier

Fonacier is among those rare multi-dimensional guards in the UAAP who has both defense and offense. He can score in spurts, as shown in our loss versus Chinese Taipei, but can settle down as a defender or facilitator if the match-up dictates so.

However, Parks is more superior in offense and expect this dime-a-dozen Bulldog to be more explosive than his Blue Eagle senior.

 

Kevin Ferrer

This 6’4” defender from University of Santo Tomas is a scrappy wingman known as Parks’ kryptonite.

Now that Jeric Teng is still recuperating from an elbow injury, Ferrer has also shown his scoring skills, especially against bigger teams. Coaches can still develop his outside shooting and what’s good about Ferrer is that he now makes better decision in shooting, though consistency must still be the key to fully unlock his potential.

In comparison: Gabe Norwood

This Fil-Am is just a few inches taller than him and like Ferrer, he’s as thin as a scarecrow yet as sturdy as steel, especially on defense. If he has the chance to mentor Ferrer in the future, what he may share to him is his playmaking skill as a point forward seems to be a necessity in today’s international hoops scene.

 

 

Arnold Van Opstal

The once hulking slowpoke for De La Salle was ridiculed as travesty in his rookie year, unable to matchup with the likes of Greg Slaughter and Karim Abdul in the shaded lane.

Enter big man coach Jun Limpot, AVO has developed quickness, footwork, and the necessary fundamentals to emerge as a reliable big man for the Green Archers.

His stats may not be imposing, but he’s top 3 in field goal percentage in Season 76 with a 56 per cent shooting clip, just behind African Ingrid Sewa of Adamson and the seldom-used Glen Khobuntin of
NU. The best thing about Van Opstal is that he’s very coachable and of course, he’s 6-foot-8.

In comparison: Japeth Aguilar

Like Van Opstal, Aguilar was once a slowpoke beanpole in the UAAP who never had a flourishing collegiate career, both locally and abroad. He also figured in a number of controversies and was often criticized for being too unfriendly to coaches. However, he proved that he is a disciplined man and became one of the best assets of Gilas, wowing the crowd with his sensational dunks and defense against bigger centers.

Van Opstal has that potential — a quick big man who plays with high hops who can electrify
the Filipino crowd with occasional highlight reels.

Meanwhile, here are the potential Gilas players from the NCAA:

Baser Amer

The former San Beda Red Cub triple-double machine is now the king Lion for the three-time defending champions.

Standing at 5’10”, he has considerable size to match up against Asia’s bigger point guards. The best thing about Amer is his stability and the willingness to play the role of overall playmaker despite having the skills enough to make him the NCAA’s leading scorer. That kind of point guard is tailor-fit for FIBA competition.

In comparison: LA Tenorio

Like Amer, Tenorio is a former Red Cub who once blazed the net in NCAA juniors’ hoops before emerging as the star point guard of Ateneo in the early 2000s.

Unlike Amer, however, Tenorio is a natural scorer but the good thing about him is that he grew to be true point guard under then Blue Eagles coach Joe Lipa, who once developed ex-national player Ronnie Magsanoc. Tenorio is currently among the country’s elite point guards and, injury trouble aside, Amer is on his way there.

 

 

Raymond Almazan

He currently is the NCAA’s leading MVP candidate with an average of 15 points, 13 rebounds, and nearly three blocks a game despite the presence of bulkier African centers like Ola Adeogun and Cedric Noube Happi.

This 6’7” stat monster is a relentless rebounder and post defender who has developed a low-post game under coach Caloy Garcia. He only has to build up more muscle for him to be among the country’s best center-forwards and among the current NCAA players, he is a shoo-in in the pros.

In comparison: Marc Pingris

Remember Pingris during his amateur days in the defunct Philippine Basketball League? He was skinny and played funny. With his long hair, he looked funnier.

The common denominator between his amateur and pro play is his street-honed work ethic — his
biggest asset in his ascent to the national team.

Like Pingris, Almazan bears that work ethic and hustle despite lack of bulk. And Almazan could be better now that he has a decent clip from the three-point line.

CJ Perez

Perez, along with a bunch of “no-namers,” is among the more important players of San Sebastian College.

Perez continues the basketball heritage of Tagalog-speaking black Fil-foreigners from northern Luzon and, like his predecessors Willie Miller and Topex Robinson, plays with utmost tenacity.

Perez, still a teenager at 18, is still raw and unpolished but he plays with Miller’s agility and Robinson’s hustle at a good 6-foot-1. He may be the next best point guard for the Philippines, if he further develops his playmaking skills. And, speaking of a predecessor…

In comparison: Jayson Castro William

He was a CJ Perez during his rookie year. Playing in his first NCAA season at the age of 17, Castro had the hops, athleticism, and stamina to be among the premier point guards of the league and now, of the country.

Perez is reminiscent of Castro’s style of unpredictable and speed-driven play which has evidently unnerved bigger teams in the FIBA Asiad.

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Parting shots: Shout outs and love to the people of Bacolod, Murcia, Talisay, Sagay, and Escalante in Negros Occidental for the wonderful accommodation given to me during my stay there in from August 7 to 11.

I would like to thank Bro. Valentin Zapata of the Save Negros Movement for being a generous host, as well as Jun Ano, the legendary blind polymath of Partido Lakas ng Masa-Negros (PLM-Negros); Tatay Nanding Damalerio and the relatives of victims of extra-judicial killings in Escalante City (where I spent my birthday despite the scary situation of the city); Kuya Rene, our genius guide; members and staff of PLM-Negros; the staff of Nature’s Hotel, which has soundproof rooms to contain our voices while watching the FIBA Asiad; and finally, the party people of MO2.

On a final note, I would also like to invite our readers to join the Million People March against Pork Barrel on August 26 at Luneta. For those who find the pork barrel system as a waste of people’s money, this event is for you. Meeting place is at 8:30 am in Plaza Miranda in Quiapo and by 9 AM, let’s march toward Luneta. See you there!