MANILA, Philippines—When his name was recently mentioned as one of the coaches being considered for the men’s national basketball team that would be culled from the PBA, nobody objected.

In fact everyone agreed it was high time he was given a chance to try his hand on the international level.

Yeng Guiao, you see, has never coached a Philippine team. Not even during the time when he was with the Philippine Basketball League. The closest he got to handling a national team was as assistant coach to Derick Pumaren in the 1989 Southeast Asian Games in Malaysia.

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The other day I called Yeng to compliment him on how he has managed to keep the Red Bull Barako not only afloat but soaring high despite the loss of his key players the last two seasons.

The exodus started in 2006 when Enrico Villanueva was dealt to San Miguel Beer. After that it was Lordy Tugade, followed by Larry Fonacier and, more recently, Junthy Valenzuela.

I remember talking with Yeng after the PBA rookie draft at the Market Market mall in Taguig City last year. With a depleted cast (and it wasn’t so depleted then), Yeng said he couldn’t be too optimistic about the fortunes of the Barako in the coming season.

“I hope the fans do not expect too much from us,” he said.

Truth is, nobody expected much from Yeng and his team. It was hard to understand why the Barako continued to win, always landing in the upper berth of the standings despite the odds being against them.

From the ruins, the 6-foot-2 Cyrus Baguio has emerged as the Barako’s go-to-guy, a clear indication that Yeng is the kind of coach who brings out the best in his player.

“And he wasn’t even recruited from the rookie draft,” he reminded me.

For seven consecutive conferences, Red Bull has managed to be in the semifinal round. They just can’t seem to do anything wrong.

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“Is there a secret to this? Are you following a magic formula?” I asked the Red Bull mentor, who is also the vice governor of Pampanga province.

Yeng couldn’t think of anything special the team is doing.

“As far as the technical aspect is concerned, simple lang ang ginagawa namin, nothing super special. I believe the players are motivated. I don’t give them too little or too much of anything. Like playing time for example, if the player doesn’t have enough, he will not be able to develop confidence. Pag sobra naman, he will not value the time given him.”

This conference, although he did not expect to, Yeng might find himself in contention for his sixth championship title. He has five tucked under his belt since he joined the Philippine Basketball Association, all of them in import-laced conferences.

And although Red Bull did not win a single title in the last three conferences, this time he shone brightest because his team managed to overachieve despite the dire lack of manpower.

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While nothing formal has been offered or proposed to him as yet, Yeng said he would be honored to coach the national team.

“If ever though, I hope we wouldn’t have to go through a screening process where we are asked to submit training plans and programs and all that stuff before we are chosen.”

Yeng was among three PBA coaches who were considered for the national team that was formed for the 2007 Tokushima FIBA-Asia. The other two were Joel Banal and Chot Reyes, who was chosen largely on the basis of the impressive program he submitted.

Yeng didn’t want to go through all that again, if ever.

Actually, the choice of a national coach might not be that simple. To start with, who will have the right to choose, the SBP or the company that will sponsor the national team?

Last time, it was the San Miguel Corporation.

Naturally they will want to choose a coach from the stable.

One thing sure, the PBA has agreed to support the national team for the next two years. That means the pro league will be preparing for the 2009 FIBA-Asia Men’s championship which is the qualifier for the World Basketball Championship in 2010.

“I’m available if they want me,” Yeng said despite his misgivings.