PBA: Meralco Bolts Philippine Cup preview

Last Philippine Cup: An up-and-down conference for the Bolts still meant they finished with an 8-6 record, good enough for a quarterfinals berth. That put them up against the Petron Blaze Boosters though, and the result was a two-game sweep against a squad with more weapons. Offseason Moves: The Meralco Bolts are tired of being a middling team. They've been ready to break out these past two years but haven’t quite put things together the right way to take it to the next level. Meralco's offseason started off with a great PBA Draft. The Bolts instantly improved their frontline when they grabbed a starting power forward in Cliff Hodge and a bull-strong big man they can bring off the bench in Kelly Nabong. The team then made another huge move when they traded for Ronjay Buenafe, adding another big gun to play alongside their main weapons, Sol Mercado and Mark Cardona. All things were pointing to a flawless offseason for Meralco, until Asi Taulava opted not to re-sign and play instead for the ABL. The Bolts lost a key player who provided toughness and scoring in the paint, as well as veteran leadership to the team. They scrambled and made a smart move, swapping out project Jason Ballesteros for Carlo Sharma. While Sharma is a proven player, he'll need to step up his game to replace "The Rock." Three keys to being successful in the Philippine Cup 1. The Dribble Drive Offense - The Dribble Drive Offense helped make Derrick Rose, Tyreke Evans and John Wall into NBA stars. The offense is focused on guards who can drive to the lane and create scoring opportunities for the rest of the team. Sol Mercado is one of the best in the league at attacking the basket, and with the offense focused around him, it should allow Mac Cardona and Ronjay Buenafe to freelance on the wings and get to open spots. If this offense works for the Bolts, they will become an even more dangerous team. 2. Post production - The Bolts have always been known to be perimeter-oriented, with opposing teams keying their defense to stopping the wing players of Meralco. In order to address this weakness, the Bolts need consistent production from their big men. Unfortunately for Meralco, Taulava, their one consistent post presence, is no longer with them. Without a traditional back-to-the-basket post player to free up their outside scorers, they will have to rely on the Dribble Drive Offense to open up the paint for their big men. Guys like Hodge, Sharma and Jay-R Reyes have to be tough, find their open spots underneath, and finish strong. 3. Not a two-man team - It’s clear that Mercado and Cardona are the main guns of Meralco, but the team shouldn’t limit themselves to just these two players. When Cardona went down with an injury last season, the Bolts had trouble replacing his production, thus, trading for Buenafe was a step in the right direction for Meralco. Looking at their roster though, a lot of other players can contribute both on the offensive and defensive end. Chris Ross can set-up the offense, control the tempo and provide leadership on the floor.  Reynel Hugnatan will be relied on for toughness and an inside presence. Mark Borboran can use his length and athleticism both as a defensive stopper and finisher on the break. All these guys have to step up in order for Meralco to take their team to the next level. What’s the one thing that scares Rain or Shine fans? The Meralco Bolts always look good on paper. How can they not? They have all the right pieces to make a good team. But on paper is always different than on the court, and that’s always been the issue with Meralco. The talent that they have on paper doesn’t translate to on the court. Coach Ryan Gregorio has always been about balancing the production of his roster, especially his two stars Mercado and Cardona. It looks like this year, he has a plan that will finally turn Meralco into a well-oiled machine. But once again, it’s just a plan. If it doesn’t translate on the court, the Bolts will return to PBA purgatory: an early-exit playoff team. How this will likely play out: The Meralco Bolts placed sixth at the end of all of the elimination rounds last season. They were then kicked out in the early stages of the playoffs of every conference. It’s easy to assume that the Bolts will remain status quo and stay mediocre. But they are coming into this season with additional firepower, a revamped frontcourt and a solid game plan. They’ve made moves in the offseason that will help them win now. They’re done looking down the road. If the Bolts can execute their game plan with Mercado and Cardona playing off each other, they can be at the same level as Barangay Ginebra, San Mig and Rain or Shine. However, if they continue to play one-on-one isolation basketball with no direction, then it’s status quo for Meralco. They might actually fall further down the rankings given the improvement of the rest of the league. - AMD, GMA News