Omar Sneed: Not Your Typical Import

When the Powerade Tigers ultimately decided to replace Rashad McCants with another import, I was both glad and apprehensive.  Happy because McCants wasn't really helping the team grab wins.  The dude can score, but does little of anything else.  At the same time, I wasn't too sure about getting a 35-year-old as the replacement.  Omar Sneed was on the low radar, as opposed to the highly-touted McCants.

Sneed was quick to dispel those doubts.

Sneed's 3 games with the team all produced wins, with Sneed averaging 23 points, 17.3 rebounds, 7 assists and 1.7 steals per game.  He is also shooting an incredible 57% from the field.  His 7 assists/game would actually rank second  in the league, behind only Jimmy Alapag.  Coming from a big man, that's quite a remarkable feat.

Despite those eye-popping numbers, Sneed is not your typical import.  While most imports love chucking up shots, Sneed is always looking to pass first.  In his first game, he dished out 11 assists, the same number of attempts he took.  But when his scoring was needed in the game against powerhouse Talk N' Text, he didn't disappoint either on way to 32 points on 12/19 shooting.  Against league-leaders Rain or Shine, he did a little of everything, finishing up with 24/20/7.

The first thing you would notice about Sneed is that he is a bit unorthodox.  He throws up awkward shots and he isn't your typical post-up back-to-the-basket player despite his size and width.  To some extent, this adds up to his unpredictability.  Certainly Rain or Shine didn't expect him to put the ball on the floor and slash (in slow-mo fashion) for a lay-up.  Heck, I'm pretty sure Alapag was as surprised as everybody else when Sneed did a face up interception on him.  And while everyone almost expected him to dunk the ball, he leisurely went up for a soft lay-up.

But perhaps the most important thing that Sneed brought to the team was his team-first mentality.  Having spent a large chunk of his career in Europe, he has gotten accustomed to Euro-basketball, which is characterized by team-ball.  He came in knowing that Gary David will be the primary option, and that his task is to grab rebounds and be a much-needed interior presence on both ends of the floor; things that McCants failed to provide.

Sure, Omar Sneed is slow.  He looks a bit out-of-shape.  He is 35 years old.  His shooting form is ugly.  He is not athletic and certainly not flashy.  Call him boring, but at the end of the day, he gets the job done, and that's what matters.

After all, we've got fafa Rey to take care of the highlights.

 Roar out.

PowerRey has taken Flight

Image courtesy of the PBA and Paul Ryan Tan

TerREYfic!  Guevarralaciouss! AuthoREYtative!

I tend to throw out bad puns when something excites me, so pardon me for those.   It's just that things looked bleak just a week ago with Powerade starting the conference with 2 losses, when all of a sudden came a REY of light! (there, I did it again.)

I admit it.  Of the 3 guys we got in exchange for Marcio Lassiter, it was Rey Guevarra I was LEAST excited about.  Rabeh Al-Hussaini of course was the best acquisition, and a veteran shooter like Lordy Tugade was a welcome addition.  Guevarra on the other hand, was someone I did not expect to have any significant impact to the team.

Boy, was I dead wrong.

Rey played just 5 minutes in his debut as a Tiger, going scoreless.  He did not play in the team's second game against Barako Bull.  Now, if Rey is to do something that would make people notice him, there could be no better way than to do it in emphatic fashion.  The game against Alaska provided the opportunity.

It was a blowout, and I was getting sleepy watching the game on TV.  Rey was having a good game to start off, and was on pace to eclipse his previous career-high of 14 points. 

Seconds left before the third quarter wraps up, Rey gets the ball on top for an isolation.  Sweet crossover that left Bonbon Custodio eating dust, then past import Jason Forte (nonetheless) for a monster slam!  Can somebody say NASTY?!? I don't know about you, but I haven't seen such a forceful delivery from a local player in recent memory.  And who would expect that kind of play from an almost forgotten guy who has career averages of 3.44 points?

 

(vid courtesy of youtube user  renz1347713)

Now, before we overhype this guy, I would like to point out that he is a pretty good defender as well.  He chooses his shots well and is good at leaking-out that often leads to easy baskets on the offensive end.

He scored 11 points the next game versus Talk N' Text, highlighted by another beastly slam off a Gary David pass.  Now every Powerade game wouldn't be complete without a Rey Guevarra jam.  But more importantly, we discovered a gem in what seemed to be a filler guy in the Rabeh-Marcio trade, and who knows, he could even end up as the best catch of that deal.

Roar out!!