Andray Blatche—the 32-year old former NBA big man—will likely be remembered in history as the savior of Pinoy basketball.




Netting 17 and 41 points in his last two outings in the FIBA qualifying windows, Blatche has proven—perhaps to some pundits’ dismay—that the big man from Syracuse, New York has no equal, at least in our history in world competition. Blatche is an unstable force of nature, likely to be as much of a black hole as he is a shining star; a bittersweet basketball machine that gobbles up touches and possessions as much as he does points and rebounds.  


But as this FIBA window has proven—it works, and so far, it’s the only thing we have to offer, and it may take a while until we as a basketball nation have something new and better to offer.


Part of us wishes the team performed better during the Blatche-less outings. There was a great deal of ballyhoo attributed to Philippine basketball right after the Australian skirmish that threatened to wipe our name off the FIBA basketball map. Yeng Guiao was established as the new coach of the Philippine team, supposedly as a symbolic means of emphasizing grit and strategy instead of relying on puso as the driving force of the team. Even the name “Gilas Pilipinas” was (temporarily) shelved in favor of a nonpartisan, no-nonsense Team Pilipinas. But the Pringle and Standhardinger experiments were failures; an ignition key that would fire up defenses and open up the shooters and slashers was missing throughout the games—and Blatche, fresh off his FIBA suspension, seems to be that ingredient.


Judging Blatche on the basis of results probably won’t do him enough justice—after all, Blatche remains to be a rare breed of player who peaked perhaps a bit too early in the NBA. Blatche was an unusual combination of size, serviceable ballhandling, rebounding, and shooting that wasn’t the norm when he was drafted in 2005.  He did not have the three ball in his NBA career—he averaged .237 3PT% for Brooklyn and Washington—which is also probably why he was drafted 49th overall in the 2nd round.  But the skill and size were always there—in his 2010-11 season, he averaged 16.81 ppg and 8.2 rpg, both career highs, but also had an impressive 1.53 spg—showing that despite his faults, he had unique guard instincts in his game. Perhaps stretching the narrative a bit, it's possible he was already the progenitor, the beta version, if you will, of the Anthony Davis, KAT, and Kristaps Porzingis mold we keep seeing today, but one with less emphasis on keeping in shape.


Blatche’s talents complement Gilas’s weaknesses very well.  No matter the talent we field in during national competitions, we still usually lack (a) an elite inside presence that can suck the gravity from perimeter defenses; (b) a willing penetrator who can break down set defenses; and (c) a competent shooter who can keep zone defenses honest and vulnerable.  Much can be said on Blatche’s defensive capabilities (he averaged 1.4 bpg in his entire FIBA Philippine career), but it’s equally valid to say he has freed up our microwave offenses more effectively than any naturalized center we've had. We may have died on occasion from his 3.4 turnovers per game, but we lived through most of it, and we have his enormous shoulders to thank for carrying us into the 2019 FIBA World Cup.  With Blatche carrying us, and a bit of luck, we now find ourselves back among the company of Champions, but even this comes with an asterisk.

Andray Blatche’s last swing for the gold might also signify our own final, desperate shot at the gold. Come 2023, very few of the current roster names will be serviceable or relevant.  One can easily see a lack of generation-bridging talent in the PBA (itself a shade of its former glory)  once the Castros, Fajardos, and Lees begin their steady descent into obscurity. One wonders what lies in store for Team Pilipinas.  The Brothers Ravena? Babes Bolick and CJ Perez? Kai Sotto coming home from the inevitable stint in Real Madrid?  Jordan “Laker Forever” Clarkson?  


Andray Blatche is our basketball messiah, but the basketball he saved remains an aging, obsolete brand of ball on its last legs, gnashing impatiently for a revamp and a reinvention.  The Next Big Thing in Philippine basketball is yearning to break out and get discovered, but like Blatche, we’ll probably recognize it right under our noses a few years too late.


Original photo by Keith Allison