Saturday, October 22, 2011

How can the Aces rack up their first W?


With a 0-3 win-loss record and a looming fourth straight loss from the hands of the much-improved Elasto Painters, the Aces should start looking for numerous options to rack up their first win of the conference and to lessen up the pressure from the newly installed coach Joel Banal.

Currently, the Aces is dead last when it comes to the point production averaging the least team points from among the ten teams in the current conference. This only shows how awful is Alaska in running their offense.

There might be some problems with a slow or not enough ball rotation, due to the fact that the play always starts on either Sonny Thoss or Jay-R Reyes post-up move.

When these two bigmen starts posting up, Sonny or Jay-R should do quick decisions on what to do with the ball. If they intend to score, they should take it strong inside immediately and not by standing up for almost 3-5 seconds before making a move.

Enough spacing is also needed when one of the bigmen is posting up to prevent a logjam inside the paint. It was evident in the past three games that there are a lot of ball tap-outs resulting to Aces turnovers.

The guards may also lack the movement without the ball as we often see the three other players standing around outside the shaded lane and waiting for the bigmen to operate or pass. The guards should rotate from side-to-side and move continuously to confuse the opponents’ defense.

The Aces need a quick ball movement and consistent shooting from the guards and forwards of the Aces and for these players to have a good rhythm, they should have an equal share of the ball in the offense.

Another problem is the lack of outside scoring threat for the Aces, ala pure spot-up shooter like Larry Fonacier. Without a consistent shooter from the outside, the opponent can easily clog down their defense on the paint and that makes it very easy for them to beat the Aces.

The vaunted triangle is very effective if you have a good collection of spot-up long-range and midrange shooters and the downside is if your outside shots is not falling in or the shooters is having an off-night game.

Just like what happened in the past three losses where the Aces struggled with their outside shooting. Alaska should make adjustments on their offensive plays and ignite some slashing moves on their offense to cope up with a bad shooting night. This is why former Aces players like Rodney Santos, Jeffrey Cariaso and Kenneth Duremdes among others is so vital in the Alaska triangle offense because of their ability to slash and get it inside everytime Alaska needs to twist their offensive options.

La Tenorio should wake up and start to catch fire and bring in his signature teardrop shots coming of a pick and slash.

Cyrus Baguio, if healthy should initiate more driving offensive moves, while Thoss and Reyes can still continue operating inside one at a time or if the opportunity arises.

Tony Dela Cruz and Mac Baracael can settle for those mid-range jumpshots and Brandon Cablay for those setup three-point shots.

And if the shots are not clicking, the Aces do have enough slashers and aside from Baguio, the Aces can use and setup a play for Bonbon Custodio as he is most effective driving to the basket coming off a dribble or a pick.

And if there is a chance to run-and-gun, the Aces should not shy away if given the opportunities and only LA can initiate this with his good court vision.

This would also maximize Custodio’s open-court style to increase his effectiveness on the court and for him to avoid shooting those ill-advised outside shots.

From among the bench, Julius Pasculado deserves to have the playing time and can be used sparingly to fire up the team’s offense with his pro-hop driving layups and outside shots. He can be the Aces’ version of Josh Uzbiztondo.

From all the changes mentioned, it only boils down to the right execution of plays, know when to go inside, shoot outside, slash or when to fasten up the tempo of the game.

The aces can go inside and then slash on the next play, run if there is an opportunity or do what the defense is giving them, execute properly and do not force the issue.

With a combination of different strategies with each player having their own shares in team play, it will not be long for Alaska to get their first W of the season and it all starts with the Lieutenant on command.

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