Roster Preview: The Guards

It's no secret that GlobalPort's offense will rely heavily on its guards: Alex Cabagnot, Terrence Romeo and Stanley Pringle. They will be eating up the majority of minutes in both guard spots and taking up a significant percentage of the team's shots, in addition to the standard guard duties of orchestrating the offense and controlling the flow of the game. They can create scoring opportunities for their teammates as well as take up scoring responsibilities themselves. These are three very capable playmakers, but each of them brings different things to the team.

Alex Cabagnot

The Cool Whip. The Crunchman. One of the best point guards in the league for the past decade, Alex Cabagnot is the most experienced playmaker in the team. Always among the league leaders in assist, Cabagnot again topped that category last season, average 6 assists per game, and this was despite playing in a new environment with relatively less offensive weapons than his previous team (Petron). When Alex was traded to GlobalPort, he was looked upon to score more than he used to, a role he hasn't taken on since his Coca-Cola days, and although Alex struggled a bit at first, he eventually settled down and even ended the season ranked 11 in scoring, with a 13 PPG average.

Next season, with the continued development of Terrence Romeo and the arrival of spitfire rookie Stanley Pringle, Alex probably won't be tasked to score as much, and he can ease back to his natural role of being more of a floor general. At 31, Alex is still as a good as he's been, and he's still someone that you can count on to make a big shot when the game is on the line. Also of note, Alex is among the top 5 league leaders in steals, and that's to those who say that he can't play defense. 

Terrence Romeo

If his preseason performance is any indication, then it's quite safe to say that Romeo is poised for a breakout season. In contrast to Cabagnot who is a pass-first guard, Romeo is a scorer. He averaged 12.43 points per game last season (2nd among rookies, 15th in the league). Next year though, especially with the departure of Jay Washington, Romeo is looked upon to be the team's primary scoring option. While such responsibility can be quite daunting for someone who will only be entering his sophomore year, Romeo has shown that he belongs in the big league.

There are still a lot of areas he needs to improve on like his shot selection (he shot 34% from the field and 25% from threes), but if he just continues to develop and stay healthy, I'm quite confident to say that it's due time for Romeo to establish himself as a star in this league. And the scariest part is? He's only 22.

Stanley Pringle 

If Alex is a passer and Romeo is a scorer, Pringle is a mix of both. Pringle can also play both guard positions quite effectively, and he couldn't have found a better team to land on where he can immediately make a big impact than GlobalPort. There is much excitement and buzz around this prized rookie. At 27 and having played in various pro leagues around the world, Pringle is no rookie by any sense, and he's very much capable of making noise in just his first year playing in the PBA. Imagine a bigger Jayson Castro with a better outside shot. That's how good Stanley Pringle can be. 

There really isn't too many holes in Pringle's game. He can slash, shoot, pass, defend, and even rebound. Don't be surprised to see a triple-double game or two from him this season. He will ease some scoring pressure off Romeo. I certainly can't wait to see Pringle and Romeo running the floor together and blitzing past helpless defenders.

Triple Threat

Last year, GlobalPort also entered the season with a trio of talented guards with Terrence Romeo, RR Garcia and Solomon Mercado, but this year's version of a three-headed monster is presumably much better. Sophomore Romeo is obviously better than Rookie Romeo, Cabagnot is much more experienced and established than RR, and Pringle is a more all-around player than Sol. 

After two hard luck years as a franchise, GlobalPort believes they've got the pieces now to take this team to the next level. A quarterfinal appearance is a modest goal and reaching the semifinals is definitely achievable, but this team will only go as far as the triumvirate of Cabagnot, Romeo and Pringle will take them.

Port Out.