The Final Score: The other side of the Lassiter trade

During a Petron huddle, in a game against Meralco last February 15, players and coaches gathered around Coach Ato Agustin. But Nonoy Baclao remained seated. Like an odd man out. Was it an act of defiance? Was it an act of indifference? For someone who has yet to play a single second in the Commissioner’s Cup, surely a time-out was a good reason to stand, stretch, move, do anything, but sit. And yet Nonoy Baclao, a number one pick, now a forgotten man on Petron’s roster, sat through an entire time-out. There he was; a lonely figure. “We have too many big guys now with Rabeh Al-Hussaini back,” Petron Assistant Coach Gee Abanilla admits. “Plus we have an import in an unlimited-height conference.” I caught up with Baclao right before Petron faced B-Meg last February 19. I asked about the trade, fans’ comments, lack of playing time, his body language, his preference to stay seated during time-outs. He didn’t want to talk. He didn’t have to. Eyes speak. A face reveals. Silence says a lot. I agree with PBA Commissioner Chito Salud. The proposed Nonoy Baclao-Rey Guevarra-for-Marcio Lassiter trade has to be restructured. I suspect Baclao feels otherwise. It’s the other side of the Lassiter conundrum. You and many others probably can’t fathom the idea: two bench players for one third of Powerade’s charismatic Big 3. Baclao, on the other hand, probably can’t wait for it to materialize. He probably believes the promise of more playing time, productivity, fulfillment and validation exists somewhere else. “Walang attitude problem si Nonoy,” Olsen Racela, Petron Assistant Coach, says. “He’s a good role player. Very unselfish. It’s just that we need offense from our big men. Somebody who can be productive off ball screens. Kaya nauuna pa si Rob Reyes or Carlo Sharma sa kanya.” While Lassiter scores, rebounds, finds open teammates during Powerade 10-to-zero runs, Baclao and Guevarra watch games unfold from the Petron bench. It’s a problematic equation. Productivity everyone can see in exchange for potential not everyone can understand. Surely Lassiter was flattered each time someone said the proposed trade was unfair. Surely for Baclao and Guevarra, it stung each time someone said the proposed trade was unfair. Or maybe some were just stung more than others. “Naiintindihan ko naman. Siyempre si Lassiter, nagagamit siya. Tapos kaming dalawa ni Nonoy hindi naman nakikita,” Guevarra, who scored six points off the bench against B-Meg, shares. “Hintay hintay lang tayo. Kanya-kanyang panahon lang yan. Ayaw ko na siya problemahin.” Baclao, on the other hand, has no comment. Guevarra sounds like he’s fine with whatever happens. He stays. He goes. Laro lang. Baclao looks like he’ll only be fine with that one elusive option. A Cinderella team might lose a limb when Lassiter leaves. Some might mourn. I suspect Nonoy will react differently. A controversial trade could make him whole again. The Nonoy Baclao-Rey Guevarra-for-Marcio Lassiter trade is dead. While I hear one team’s sigh of relief, I sense one player’s sigh of despair. - GMA News