San Miguel Beermen Basketball Games Updates

Yeng Guiao Picks SMB as One of the Favorites, PBA Philippine Cup Starts on Saturday

Photo Credit: Manila Standard Today

With the strong lineup that the San Miguel Beermen will be bringing in to the next season, its no wonder that Red Bull and National Team basketball coach Yeng Guiao picked them as one of the teams to beat.

For me, whether SMB is considered as one of the team to be does not provide any guarantee that these will translate to winning games or championship. SMB should be doing things differently so that they will not suffer the same fate as last year's conference where they just finished at the middle of the pack.

So what's your take on today's new look SMB? Feel free to leave your comments.

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PBA Philippine Cup blasts off Saturday

Source: INQUIRER.net
By Musong R. Castillo | October 2, 2008

Everything is in place for Season 34 of the Philippine Basketball Association with most of the old, powerhouse basketball teams expected to figure prominently in the Philippine Cup that starts on Saturday at the Araneta Coliseum in Cubao, Quezon City.

National basketball coach Yeng Guiao picked Alaska, San Miguel Beermen and Talk 'N Text as the teams to beat, while also listing reigning titlist Sta. Lucia Realty highly and putting a modest goal for his Red Bull basketball crew.

Guiao, who was named the RP basketball coach last week, also cautioned everyone of the breakout tournament for Rain Or Shine, which will play its third season in the basketball league and would want to crash the playoffs for the first time.

"This could be the breakout basketball season for Rain Or Shine," Guiao, the only basketball coach present in the formal launch Wednesday at the Diamond Hotel in Manila, said. "While for us, our goal would be to make the semifinals."

Red Bull has made it to the semifinals in each of the last seven basketball tournaments, a modern day record and one which Guiao would be hard-pressed to extend considering how the other teams beefed up and how his Barako has been decimated yet again by lopsided trades.

But the crowd will only get to see the Elasto Painters on Sunday as the Tropang Texters, which Talk 'N Text will be known from now on, take the lid off of the season when it clashes with Coca-Cola in the only basketball game scheduled.

On Sunday, San Miguel tackles Alaska after Air21, runner-up to Barangay Ginebra in the Fiesta Cup, battles the Gabe Norwood-led Rain or Shine crew at the Cuneta Astrodome in Pasay City.

A total of seven provincial basketball games are scheduled, with some games slated at non-traditional playing venues like the Olivarez Gym in Parañaque City, the New Ynares Sports Center in Pasig City and at the San Juan Arena.

Meanwhile, the basketball league is considering going back to the three-conference format next year.

"We have just started to discuss it, and there's no definite decision on it yet," said Joaqui Trillo of Alaska, this year's chair of the board.

Commissioner Renauld Barrios has been batting for the three-conference format since assuming office last season.

In a related development, the ball hogging violation has been extended to five seconds from three and starting this conference, only the player with the basketball can call a timeout for a team.