On Japeth Aguilar and his Career Suicide

Looks like the Philippine Basketball Association also has its own issues regarding top draft picks and getting them to actually play for the teams that drafted them.

Much like how the Minnesota Timberwolves are involved in a complicated situation regarding the number five pick, Ricky Rubio, and his buyout with his Spanish Team, Joventut, the PBA's Burger King Whoppers (formerly known as the Burger King Titans, and formerly formerly known as the Air 21 Express) will most likely start the 2009-2010 PBA season without their top pick from the 2009 PBA Draft.

Number one overall pick Japeth Aguilar submitted a letter to PBA Chair and Burger King team manager Lito Alvarez seeking his release from the Whoppers so that he could play for the Philippine team being assembled by Smart Telecommunications and the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP), known as the Smart-Gilas Philippine Team.

Aguilar cited wanting to play for the country as the main reason for him seeking his release from the BK Whoppers.

“We also wish to express our regrets to the management of Burger King, as well as the PBA itself for this decision even as we ask for your understanding because to us, the privilege to play for our country overrides everything else,”

But is this really the reason?

Aguilar has been granted a hefty contract by the Whoppers, in fact, they gave him the maximum-level guaranteed contract for a rookie in the PBA, which is exactly what the number one overall pick deserves. He will get paid P150,000 a month for the first year of his contract, P225,000 a month for the second year, and P350,000 a month for the third year of his contract.

Apart from this, Alvarez already played the role of good samaritan and allowed Aguilar to play for the Smart-Gilas Philippine team despite being under contract for the Whoppers. To add to that, they allowed Japeth Aguilar to get paid by Manuel V. Pangilinan, who is sponsoring the team, as remuneration for his services.

The Whoppers used their first-round picks on the 6-foot-9 Aguilar, triple-double machine Chris Ross, and heady forward Ronnie Matias. Ross was subsequently traded since the Whoppers' backcourt would then be too crowded with veteran starting guards Gary David and Wynne Arboleda, and backup guards Egay Billones and Ronjay Buenafe getting valuable rotation time over Ross. Burger King also traded star versatile forward Arwind Santos to the San Miguel Beermen for draft picks in the coming seasons.

These were just some of the moves that Alvarez made in order to accommodate Aguilar and build the team around him. If you take a look at the circumstances Aguilar is in, you'd have to say that this guy's got a silver spoon in his mouth. For a player who barely played for Western Kentucky University (best known for being Orlando Magic guard Courtney Lee's alma mater), he's got a professional basketball team putting all of its hopes and aspirations for the coming season on the shoulders of pure "potential".

Aguilar's stats during his final season are in no way spectacular. He played a total of 71 minutes in 14 games. He averaged 1.5 points and 0.9 rebounds per contest. We're talking about a guy who only played garbage minutes for an NCAA team. He's virtually unproven material and the last time he's really been observed by Philippine basketball junkies was during his time with the Ateneo Blue Eagles. And even then, he played garbage minutes!

Insiders speculate that the reason for Aguilar turning his back on the Whoppers is because he does not want to have to endure three years of coach Yeng Guiao screaming and cursing the hell out of him in a Whoppers uniform. Aguilar spent time playing for Guiao for the Powerade-Team Pilipinas in both the Jones Cup and the FIBA World Championship qualifiers earlier this month.

For Japeth, who hasn't even proven himself yet on any stage, save for his height, this is a very risky career move. PBA Commissioner Sonny Barrios said in a statement that Aguilar could face a "lifetime ban" from the league as a consequence of his actions. The current situation is similar to that of Coca-Cola Tigers guard Alex Cabagnot who also sought release from his contract with the team that drafted him, the Sta. Lucia Realtors. After Cabagnot heard that he could face a lifetime suspension from the PBA, he subsequently flew back from Hawaii and suited up for the Realtors.

However, the PBA has not been known to be very convincing when it comes to dealing sanctions to its players. Earlier this decade, Realtors guard Joseph Yeo and Purefoods TJ Giants forward Enrico Villanueva were part of a physical altercation in an exhibition match sponsored by the PBA between alumni of the Ateneo Blue Eagles and the De La Salle Green Archers. Yeo, who had not applied for the PBA Draft at the time, was caught punching Villanueva during the incident.

Then-PBA Commissioner Noli Eala meted out a punishment for the De La Salle and Xavier School alumnus saying that "Joseph Yeo will not be allowed to play for the PBA". One year later, Yeo was reinstated and was a first-round pick for the Sta. Lucia Realtors and he has been one of their key players ever since.

Aguilar's case is neither new nor something totally unheard of. It is just something that is simply frustrating on the part of the BK Whoppers. And in the future, it will undoubtedly cause frustration on Japeth Aguilar's end.

For now, it remains to be seen how Sonny Barrios will deal with the incident.

Looks like the Whoppers will be remaining at the cellar of the league this season.

With information gathered from http://sports.inquirer.net/professional/professional/view/20090829-222543/Japeth-wants-out-of-Burger-King and http://mwu132002.multiply.com/journal/item/90/Rookie_Retrospective