PBA: After calling out Alex Cabagnot, is Arwind Santos ready to be Petron's alpha male?

The Petron Blaze Boosters' recent incarnations have been long on talent, low on chemistry and leadership. Last Sunday, Arwind Santos made a move to change that. The high-leaping forward came out and said that his team needed to play with more heart, and even went as far as to cite whom he thought needed to kick their game up a notch, his point guard Alex Cabagnot. And while such a revelation made public could have been the recipe for disaster, it instead galvanized the Blaze Boosters, and allowed them to halt a two-game losing skid, as they beat sister team Ginebra 98-95. In an FTW episode about it, Barako Bull Energy Cola power forward Doug Kramer said, "Alam din kasi ni Arwind [Santos] what Alex [Cabagnot] is capable of. If Arwind didn't know he [Cabagnot] was capable of doing that, Arwind wouldn't have called him out."

	Points	FGM/FGA	FTM/FTA	AST
Loss to Rain or Shine	3	1/8	1/2	4
Loss to Alaska	12	4/13	4/5	6
Win over Ginebra	24	9/15	5/6	8

Alex Cabagnot's last three games in the 2012-13 Philippine Cup But more than just the numbers on the court, PBA analyst Jason Webb saw it as a chance for Santos to become the team's leader, saying, "At some point someone on Petron has to step up. If Arwind wants to do it that way, then he's going to step up as a leader. So far it's worked. "Someone has to step up and be the alpha male of that squad. If it's Arwind and that's the way he wants to run it, you allow him to do it."

	Points	FG%	Rebounds
First four games (2-2 record)	15.75	50.0%	9.25
Win over Ginebra	22.0	55.68%	17.0

Arwind Santos in the 2012-13 Philippine Cup Webb also said that such a leadership role would strengthen Santos' position come MVP conversations, as it puts him at the front and center of the squad. While calling out a teammate is a rarity in Philippine sports, indeed, the panelists were unable to recall another similar incident in the PBA, such a move is very common in American leagues. In the NBA, Los Angeles Lakers star Kobe Bryant is notorious for getting on his teammates, both current and past. Most recently, against the Denver Nuggets in this year's playoffs, Bryant told Yahoo Sports' Adrian Wojnarowski, "I'm going to tell Andrew [Bynum] he needs to play with a sense of urgency, a sense of desperation. "He's got to put himself at a fever pitch and elevate his game. I'm going to tell him the truth." Wojnarowski also said that Bryant had a similar conversation with Pau Gasol. Petron's next games include matches against GlobalPort Batang Pier (October 26), the Air21 Express (November 2), before they confront rivals Talk 'N Text on November 7.  While those first two games are against the current cellar dwellers of the PBA, that last one against the Tropang Texters would be the perfect opportunity to put Santos' alpha male status to the test.  - AMD/OMG, GMA News