SMC’s veiled threat; Salud’s dad also once banned a San Miguel import
Philippine Basketball Association Commissioner Chito Salud’s firm decision to ban Petron Blaze import Renaldo Balkman has elicited to what amounts to a veiled threat of a pullout by the San Miguel Corporation teams in the PBA.
In a statement emailed to media by Jon Hernandez III of the Corporate Affairs Office, San Miguel Corporation said it would like to “apologize to basketball fans and the Philippine Basketball Association for the unsportsmanlike conduct shown by its import Renaldo Balkman” adding that “we accept the decision to ban Balkman for life from the league” even as it said they “do not condone his actions” which were earlier lucidly laid out by Commission Salud in announcing his decision to ban the import.
Facing a bank of cameras at the PBA board room after giving Balkman a chance to be heard behind closed doors in the lawyer’s appreciation of due process, and obviously not impressed or intimidated by the fact that Balkman was accompanied to the PBA by the Petron Blaze team manager, the coaching staff led by Olsen Racela and the players, Salud eloquently explained his decision.
The ban stemmed from an ugly episode seen by millions on television both here and abroad in which Balkman choked teammate Arwind Santos who was trying to pacify him after the import initiated what Salud described as “threatening physical contact with a referee followed by a prolonged, offensive, belligerent if not aberrant on-court decorum directed towards game officials and his Petron teammates and superiors, including head coach (Olsen Racela) and assistant coaches (Biboy Ravanes and Jorge Gallent)."
Salud said Balkman's actuations amounted to "a blatant and utter disrespect for the game, his own ballclub, the League, the fans and his host country."
In arriving at his decision Salud took into consideration Balkman’s track record as a player citing the 2011 incident in which, while playing for Puerto Rico in the FIBA Americas tournament the New York Knicks swingman head-butted Venezuela guard and Memphis Grizzlies guard Greivis Vasquez which resulted in a melee after which Balkman was ejected.
For his actuations in the dying seconds of the Alaska game in which he scored only 6 points and his altercation with the bench in a pre-season game against Alaska in Cebu City, Salud in addition imposed a hefty fine of P250,000.
After his meeting with the Commissioner Balkman admitted, “I knew I messed up. But I’m ready to face the consequences of my action.” He recalled that Salud said a lot of things and “he was right and I knew that as role model of my team that I was wrong.”
However, even as it accepted the ban on Balkman, San Miguel Corporation in its statement said “the mandate of its basketball operations has always been to entertain basketball fans and foster camaraderie and a spirit of healthy competition. We pride ourselves in having great teams who serve as good role models to the youth and community” but then claimed that “unfortunately the incident has been blown out of proportion and has damaged our good name” pointing out that the incident “has spread throughout the country and overseas through traditional and online media” although it failed to blame any single entity.
Underscoring the fact that San Miguel’s reputation “is of utmost importance to us because we have worked hard to cultivate this good name through the decades” it lamented the fact that “it takes only one unfortunate incident like this to undo all our efforts.”
Then came the veiled threat that “given the possible long-term effect of this incident to the San Miguel organization’s image and in consideration of our need to preserve our good reputation” Management has decided “to re-evaluate the company’s continuing participation in the PBA. Moving forward, we believe sports is a pillar of Philippine society and we will continue to support it and Filipino athletes in general in meaningful ways in and out of the PBA.”
RELATED: Cone, Chot, players react to Balkman punishment
Salud zeroed in on Balkman’s “evident disregard for local and the host country’s sensibilities highlighted by his choking act on-court in full public view of his own teammate who was trying to pacify him.”
While conceding that the decision was stiff, Salud emphasized that it “upholds the tenets of contextual accountability and the overall interest of the League and the fans.”
Salud said he encourages passion for the game but stressed that he also wants “to firmly instill a culture of accountability among our players. If one does something that violates the rules and the norms of sportsmanship and decent behavior, he will e made accountable.”
“The value of accountability is important to me to uphold at all times” remarked Salud, because he believes “it is key to this League’s continued success, the development of our players maturity and to their role models to our fans, especially the youth.”
By a strange coincidence Commissioner Chito Salud’s late father, the eminent former Commissioner Rudy Salud, also banned a San Miguel Beer import, shooting star Andrew Moten, who was banned after a series of incidents in a San Miguel game against - strangely enough - Alaska on September 24, 1991.
In banning Moten on September 26, 1991 then-Commissioner Salud cited his "disrespect f or the game officials through continuous tirades and griping about calls/non calls you disagreed with, the discourtesy demonstrated towards the Commissioner and other league officials by repeatedly addressing them with unsavory remarks as you went up and down the court and the brusque manner in which you brushed aside the league physician who came to minister to you when you were accidentally hit by Alaska player Nap Hatton.”
Moten was also cited for his "utter lack of regard for the well-being of his team" as well as the "bristling and arrogant manner you demonstrated when you appeared in the courtside area of the venue (Ultra) and the rude treatment you gave members of the sports media who are supporters of the league in promoting it as a source of wholesome entertainment and who were simply doing their jobs in seeking an interview with you.”
Faced with the lack of an import Yahoo! Philippines learned that former Barako Bull import Rodney White who played for them last year was being summoned once again but that Petron Blaze effectively intercepted the move and will suit him up against Rain Or Shine in an out-of-town game on Saturday.
White who played for the Detroit Pistons, Denver Nuggets and Golden State Warriors in the NBA and later saw action in Europe and Asia asked for his release from the Barako Bulls after seeing action for only six games to attend to family problems.
However, on July 27, 2011 the Charlotte Observer reported that White was charged with felony manufacture of marijuana long with four other charges.
Editor's note: The blogger's views do not represent Yahoo! Southeast Asia's position on the topic or issue being discussed in this post.
