Baptism of fire

Photo by Randolph B. Leongson/ INQUIRER.net

All the hype, all the talk, all the controversy stirred by Christian Standhardinger’s entry to the PBA via powerhouse San Miguel Beer shifts to a new narrative on Wednesday. In front of a curious crowd that will include practically every scout in the league, the celebrated No. 1 pick debuts with the team that has been No. 1 for the past few seasons.

It’s almost like Meralco, the team that drew the—unfortunate?—card of testing Standhardinger’s debut with the Beermen in the Commissioner’s Cup at Mall of Asia, is a mere footnote to this moment: A perfect situation for an underdog squad to think upset.

Standhardinger has tried to calm expectations of his teamup with the Beermen.

“They (Beermen) have a very great team already,” he said. “So my job is not to get in here and try to be a key piece or try to make something happen. My job is to really see what I can do and what I can personally do to make this great team a little bit better.”

It’s a tough story line to sell.

When fans and experts first caught glimpse of the 6-foot-8 Filipino-German in a Gilas Pilipinas jersey, he was touted to be the big man that could give the Beermen’s June Mar Fajardo, owner of the last four MVP trophies, some competition.

He could be, they said, a defensive foil to the San Miguel Beer big man. And his offense could force the 6-10 Fajardo to spend more energy on the other end.

Instead, the Beermen made him the top pick in this season’s rookie draft and the story has changed drastically: There is a palpable excitement over the kind of juggernaut the new Twin Towers could produce.

The fact that San Miguel will be parading 6-9 import Troy Gillenwater makes the team’s frontline a sight to behold. Throw in veteran Arwind Santos, gunner Marcio Lassiter and guards Alex Cabagnot and Chris Ross and it’s easy to expect the Beermen to pick up the second gem of a potential Grand Slam season.

“I’m really more concerned on doing whatever I can to help San Miguel become successful,” said Standhardinger, who missed the Beermen’s championship run in the Philippine Cup due to his ABL stint.

Game time is at 7 p.m., right after the 4:30 p.m. opener between leader Rain Or Shine (3-0) and Columbian (2-2).

While it seems to be a pressure-packed situation for Standhardinger, considering the controversy that arose with the trade that allowed him to go to the Beermen, the high-motor big man has done a good job mentally dialing down expectations.

“I’m in a very nice position that for the first time in my career, I can really just focus on winning. I don’t have to focus on anything else,” he said, saying life with the Beermen is far different from the cut-throat nature of professional basketball in Europe.

“Sometimes, when you have a one-year contract with a team, you have to focus on your stats because that’s how you’ll get another job. So you have to focus on winning and your stats,” Standhardinger added.

“Here, all that matters is winning.”

And don’t expect him to stray from that focus. After all, he isn’t new to the game.

“I’m not a rookie,” Standhardinger said. “I’m talking facts here. You can’t call a 28-year-old who’s played five-year professional basketball in Europe and in Hong Kong as a rookie. I know that I’m not a rookie and I know my teammates know that, too.”

The rest of the PBA is about to find out the same thing. —WITH A REPORT FROM RANDOLPH B. LEONGSON