It was supposed to be a slow Saturday morning leading up to last weekend's Season 49 draft until the PBA announced a two-team trade between Terrafirma Dyip and Barangay Ginebra.
This blockbuster swap sent Isaac Go, Stephen Holt and the third overall pick to Ginebra in exchange for Christian Standhardinger, Stanley Pringle and the 10th overall pick to Terrafirma.
The surprising part of this stunning deal was Ginebra's decision to part ways with Standhardinger. He had stellar averages for the season of 19.2 points, 10.2 rebounds, and five assists on 51.8% true shooting percentage, making him the Best Player of the Conference (BPC) for the Commissioners' Cup and second in statistical points for the Most Valuable Player award.
For Terrafirma, the core that led them to a breakthrough quarterfinal appearance in the Philippine Cup has now been dissolved. After having his most healthy and productive season, Go will now be heading to the crowd favorites Ginebra, while the excellent maiden campaign of Holt might have just prompted a change of scenery -- for the better.
How did this move reshape the future for both teams?
Ginebra: Going for youth
Losing both Standhardinger (35 years old) and Pringle (37) might seem like a massive setback for the Gin Kings. But when examining the return package, it's quite apparent that Ginebra will not only be fine but may have actually come out ahead in this trade.
First, the one that probably fits the team's style of play the most in Go. The 28-year-old center had his career-best conference in the last Philippine Cup with substantial averages of 11.7 points, 7.1 rebounds, 1.6 assists, and 1.1 blocks on 51.5% true shooting percentage (TS%). His stark difference with 'C-Stan' is his ability to become a stretch big -- as he drained 36.8% from deep in 4.7 attempts per game.
What's guaranteed is that Go will not produce the staggering numbers of Standhardinger. Ginebra fans should however remain excited about his arrival because he's the type of player who will flourish with Tim Cone's triangle system. Ever since he played in the collegiate ranks up to the present, Go has always displayed the ability to read and react on the fly.
To get technical with Ginebra's offense for a bit: with the most likely first option after the wing entry being the pass to the post, they bank on the former Ateneo Blue Eagle's basketball IQ to find the player cutting around or simply spot the wide-open guy. As per RealGM, Go ranked 10th in assist percentage among all centers at 8.6% in the last conference, a statistic that measures the rate of a player's possessions that end in an assist. Expect that number to rise once he suits up for Ginebra.
Another option where Go can be used is to space him along the pinch post where he can form a lethal two-man game with fellow Ginebra newbie Stephen Holt. The presumptive Rookie of the Year (ROY) put up splendid numbers last season of 17 points, 6.9 rebounds, 5.5 assists, and 1.9 steals on an efficient 57.2% true shooting percentage (TS%). He absolutely did not play like a rookie and could easily be the best local scorer for Ginebra from the onset.
Regarding Holt's fit with the team, refer the Jamie Malonzo and Jeremiah Gray template. Being able to come off pindowns and such off-ball screens will not be a problem for Holt, as he's been used as a secondary ball-handler in his brief stint with Terrafirma. When he operates on-ball, he has shown enough unselfishness and trust in the extra pass to find the best optimal shot in a possession -- evidenced by the aforementioned assist average.
For the third overall pick, everyone thought that Ginebra would decide to add depth in their big man rotation. Instead, they went on to select the best player available in RJ Abarrientos. The 5-foot-10 guard has already been a household name -- famous surname notwithstanding -- given he has represented the country for the 3x3 game, and even with the main squad of Gilas Pilipinas.
Abarrientos proved his pedigree when he became the Rookie of the Year in the Korean Basketball League as an Asian import. The former FEU Tamaraw had impressive averages of 13.3 points, 2.8 rebounds, and 4.8 assists on 53.6 TS%. He then went on to play for the Shinshu Brave Warriors for the Japan B.League -- in a more limited role.
In the Philippine Cup, Ginebra had an offensive rating of 104.1 points per 100 possessions, which was the third lowest mark -- as per RealGM. Inserting Abarrientos should make their offense dynamic, with the playmaking and self-creation he can provide. It would also be a plus for the Gin Kings if he attacks and pushes in transition to supply early offense since Ginebra had the second lowest pace in the same conference.
Terrafirma: What's the plan?
Seemingly trending in the right direction after last season, Terrafirma's rise may just be halted by this trade.
Head coach Johnedel Cardel's hope for continuity in his roster is not going to happen. But what else is new at this point for Terrafirma? Uncertainty once again looms for the franchise.
Ideally, having Standhardinger would get a team elated. The reality is, it's not even certain if he'll even play a game or stay for a whole season with Terrafirma. Nevertheless, let's pretend Standhardinger will be with the team for a conference or two.
The numbers stated earlier speak for themselves for Standhardinger. He's considerably the second best player in the league and as dominant of a force inside the paint. The 35-year old Filipino-German has also been a good facilitator, as an offensive hub and pinpoint passer to find wide-open guys exhibited by his 27.7% assist percentage -- best among all centers last conference.
On defense, Terrafirma will get aid to improve their rebounding numbers through the presence of Standhardinger -- where they ranked eighth in total rebound percentage at 49.2% per RealGM. His physicality should be enough to compensate for the lack of rim protection, meaning he can still be trusted to guard the opposing import or the best big of the other team. Scheme-wise, Standhardinger was most effective hedging ball screens because of his ability to retreat back to his guy after showing some resistance with the ball-handler. In short, he's passable on this end.
Moving on to the second piece of this trade: the 37-year old Pringle. Unfortunately for Terrafirma, we're in the year 2024, and Pringle hasn't been the same offensive player he used to be. In the past conferences, Ginebra has mostly utilized him as a spot-up shooter rather than being the primary creator on offense.
Pringle shot the ball from rainbow country at 37.3% on 3.9 per game and only had 18.81% usage rate last season, which is his second worst mark in his career in the league. The hope for Terrafirma, in his remaining years with the PBA, is he can become a decent secondary backcourt partner for star guard Juami Tiongson.
To complete the deal for the Dyip, they used their 10th overall pick to get Mark Nonoy. This was certainly not on the bingo card for draft enthusiasts, especially with his fit to Terrafirma's current roster. Maybe the historic 53-inch vertical jump from the draft combine got it done.
Back to real basketball, it's going to be tough for Nonoy to carve a role in the pro ranks, factoring out his skill set in relation to his height. He was measured at 5-9 but has not exactly developed as a point guard since his days with UST and DLSU.
There's no denying that the 23-year-old player is one of the speediest guards available in the draft, but his ceiling might just be a specialist or an instant spark coming off the bench. It also doesn't help that his shooting at 30.9% from the field -- and a paltry 21.9% three-point percentage -- in his current stint with the Iloilo Royals in the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL) raise concerns about his scoring consistency.
Safe to say, a lot of work remains to be done to make Nonoy a viable and reliable option in the professional league, especially when it comes to refining his shooting and decision-making on the court.