J-Wash Out, Mr. Swat In

So after my previous entries previewing the bigs and wings, I was supposed to be previewing our guards next, but as recent rumors surface regarding the San Miguel Beermen's wish to re-acquire Alex Cabagnot back to their fold, I'm going to put that one on hold. Well, nothing's clear at this point, but we all know that whatever SMB wants, more or less they'll find a way to get it. We'll see how that develops.

On the other hand, as had been hinted before, Jay Washington is indeed a goner as he was shipped out in a three-team trade that netted us Nonoy Baclao and Talk N' Text's 2017 first round pick. Given that TNT have always been a contender and will continue to do so, that pick will probably in the bottom-half of the first round.

Personally, I think this deal isn't that bad at all. The first round pick is a nice asset, but the key acquisition here is Siverino "Nonoy" Baclao, a 6'5" 27-year-old defensive stalwart. He is mostly known for being picked #1 in the 2010 draft over more-heralded college teammate Rabeh Al-Hussaini. Some may consider him a bust, although I think it would be a little unfair to call it that way. It's just that in most cases, top overall picks are usually scorers, and people who didn't know anything about Baclao's game were bound to be disappointed.

Mr. Swat may not score much, but he'll make sure you don't either.

Baclao is no scorer and probably never will be. Even in college, when he was a key part of Ateneo's championship teams, he never even averaged in double figures. Baclao may score on putbacks or off drop passes, but you'll never see him post up, throw up a hook, or beat his man off the dribble, at least not consistently. That has never been his game.

Where Baclao does wonders though is on the defensive end. Baclao is a "defensive-specialist" in the truest sense of the word.  Do a quick search of Nonoy Baclao in YouTube and the videos that come up are all rejection/block highlights, even a couple against 6'10" behemoth June Mar Fajardo.

Just in the recently concluded Governor's Cup, Baclao averaged 1.67 blocks per game, good for top 5 in the league. But given that 3 of the 4 guys above him (Fajardo, Hodge and Slaughter) all averaged much more minutes, then Baclao is essentially ranked 2nd in terms of blocks per minute, only next to 6'7" Raymond Almazan.

Some may view replacing Washington for Baclao as a downgrade, but we really don't have to look at Baclao as Washington's "replacement." If Washington really wanted out anyway, the management did a good job acquiring a first round pick and a young big in return. Replacing Washington's scoring will fall on the hands of guys like Terrence Romeo, Stanley Pringle and Keith Jensen. Baclao is just another good addition, both now and for the future.

In what looks like a new era in Philippine Basketball ushered by the emergence of young dominating bigs, a 6'5" defensive demon is definitely not the worse thing a coach can have at his disposal. If we can't have a Fajardo or a Slaughter, then we might as well have someone who can swat their shots into oblivion.

Port out.