MANILA, Philippines—Phoenix is slowly turning things around in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup as it captured its third win in the conference after overcoming NorthPort, 97-87, Wednesday at Smart Araneta Coliseum.
That little glimmer of light, however, could be fool’s gold for the Fuel Masters, who will be without a point guard for the rest of the conference—unless head coach Louie Alas’ plans get to action.
Alas is looking for a point guard to bolster his ranks after LA Revilla suffered bone spurs in his foot, effectively taking him out of action.
“We’re looking for a point guard and I hope we can get one in free agency,” said Alas in Filipino. “We won’t survive if we don’t have a true point guard.”
Phoenix, which holds a 3-4 record for the ninth spot in the standings, felt that need in the first quarter when it turned the ball eight times.
To mitigate that need at the 1 spot, Alas usually resorted to using wingmen RJ Jazul and Alex Mallari to play the point but the two are more adept in shooting and slashing instead of play-calling.
“I was employing multiple positions earlier but our guards were beaten up because all of them aren’t point guards,” said Alas. “Both RJ and Alex are combo guards.”
Alas, though, already has someone in mind but he’s not sure if he can sign that player.
The problem with Alas’ chosen player is that he’s under contract with a team in the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League, a semi-professional club team.
“I already have someone in mind but he’s still in the MPBL,” said Alas. “Let’s see if we can offer him a per-conference contract.”