(Photo Credit: SPIN.ph) I remember receiving a phone call last year around May, with a source telling me that Will Gozum was included in San Beda's line-up for Adidas Uprising. Obviously, I was surprised at what I had just heard. It wasn't because Gozum was likely going to be a Red Cub come the NCAA season. I put down that phone call astonished because of the very fact that the former Batang Gilas standout was going to transfer out of the UP Junior Maroons. The very concept of transferring schools is something that is frowned upon in the basketball community. Carlo Pamintuan wrote this terrific piece on Soc Rivera a few years back, detailing what Rivera had to go through after countless transfers to schools. Not only did the public look at Rivera with judging eyes, but his overall performance as a player suffered as well. You don't just become a player who is given raised eyebrows by fans when you decide to transfer. A player puts himself in the risk of losing ...

(Photo Credit: @dbuzzketball) Getting to see the NCAA Juniors Basketball Tournament get going just felt right. It's been a while ever since High School basketball was talked about in the country, so just seeing the top Juniors teams slug it out was refreshing. It just felt right. There was a buzz in the air which surrounded the Letran gym as San Beda and San Sebastian opened Juniors basketball action for this season. By all accounts, High School basketball was back. Fans expected usual High School basketball action. Fast-paced action between two young teams trying their best to run their respective systems. Once play started, that's exactly what we go. Action was incredibly fast. But we also saw some of the warts of High School basketball. The players playing are kids. For this go around, we saw some first game jitters get into players. When you look at the stat sheet, it's easy to let out a groan once you look at the percentage. Basketball was far from efficient...

Last night, in a surprising turn of events for many, Shaun Ildefonso announced on his Twitter account that he was leaving Ateneo to join the NU Bulldogs. You can find his entire message below: Ateneo will always be home. Thank you for the One Big Fight 💙 pic.twitter.com/uV2usLF7bx — Shaun Ildefonso (@ShaunIldefonso) May 29, 2017 The gist of his message is this: He's joining NU to join his dad, and he feels like with the Bulldogs, his athletic potential will be fully realized. The rest of his message has him thanking friends that he made during his stay in college, and the rest of the Ateneo community. For the case of this piece, only two facts are important: Shaun Ildefonso is going to NU, and a big reason for that happens to be his dad, Danny Ildefonso. So how do these factors affect not only Shaun, but other things as well? Let's talk about just that. How the decision affects Shaun It's important that we discuss the primary subject of this entire exercise...

(Photo Credit: Filoil Flying V Sports) When you talk about NCAA teams in the Filoil Flying V Preseason Tournament, the Lyceum Pirates and the JRU Heavy Bombers are the ones who have stood out thus far. The Heavy Bombers have shown that they're a team worth keeping an eye on after their opening day upset victory against the heavily favored De La Salle Green Archers. Ever since that victory, they've performed admirably led by their big gun in Teytey Teodoro.  The Pirates have started to receive comparisons to the Letran Knights team that surprised everyone during NCAA Season 92 thanks to their unorthodox press, and their high-octane attack. They've been extremely tough to stop, and a big reason for that is none other than the Baby Beast himself CJ Perez.  As both teams continue to make noise, all of a sudden, a loud roar is heard. The Heavy Bombers and the Pirates stand still. San Beda emerges and tells both teams as if they're Madison Montgomery from Amer...

(Photo Credit: SLAM Philippines) Basic Information Name: Guilmer Dela Torre Age: 19 School/Team: Arellano Braves Years of eligibility left: 0 (Graduating)  Committed to: Arellano Chiefs  Height: 5'8" Position: Combo Guard Projected Position: Point Guard  Quick Hits Strengths: - Speed is fit for the college game - Has range - Is skillful - Already a capable two-way player - Hard worker Weaknesses: - Size limits his upside - More of a points guard rather than a point guard at this stage of his career - Shooting form needs work, current one may not work well against bigger, faster defenders - Needs to be a better leader No doubt about it, Guilmer Dela Torre has cemented his status as one of the top High School prospects in recent memory. Multiple Mythical Five accolades, practically a lock in the High School All-Star games which SLAM and the NBTC hold. He was able to do all of that with a fiery offensive game, with incredible range. There's no doubt...

(Photo Credit: SLAM Philippines) Basic Information Name: Troy Mallillin Age: 18 School/Team: LSGH Greenies Years of eligibility left: 0 (Graduating)  Committed to: None (Choosing between UST, NU, Ateneo) Height: 6'3" Position: Combo Forward Projected Position: Small Forward/Shooting Guard/Point Forward Quick Hits Strengths: - Strong, college-ready body - Athleticism is off the charts - Speed is already fit for his ideal position - Versatile thanks to blend of size, athleticism, and skill - Very high upside Weaknesses: - Relatively raw - Has to work on his jump shot - Handle needs improving but is workable - Effort on defense is inconsistent Troy is best known as the NCAA MVP, but receiving the title of MVP is a tricky thing. Just because you were the MVP in the High School division doesn't mean that you'll be able to replicate those feats on the collegiate level. Former NCAA Juniors MVP Prince Rivero is undersized compared to other college big...

(Photo Credit: FIBA) Basic Information Name: Jonas Tibayan Age: 18 School/Team: CKSC Blue Dragons Years of eligibility left: 0 (Graduating)  Committed to: NU Bulldogs Height: 6'3" Position: Power Forward Projected Position: Combo Forward Quick Hits Strengths: - Strong body - High Basketball IQ - Very coachable - Is a great team player Weaknesses: - Limited upside - Still relatively raw - No clear position yet in collegiate basketball Only a select few people are given the opportunity to play for the National Youth Team. It's a honor anyone would grab in an instant. To be named a Batang Gilas standout is something special. But to be named a Gilas Cadet member at the tender age of 17? It's something else. At first glance, it means that you're a player who's more than ready to make it to the big leagues. You're not just expected to do well in the collegiate level. Some expect you to go ahead and dominate in an instant. Jonas Tibayan...

(Photo Credit: FIBA) The Batang Gilas U16 team is set to play in the SEABA tournament that's going to be held at the Smart Araneta Coliseum from May 14-18. To help with their preparation, the team is set to join the 23rd Fr. Martin's Cup that's set to start tomorrow, April 20 at the San Beda Gym. Their schedule as of this writing is as follows:  April 20 (Thursday) Venue: San Beda College  Time: 8am U16 vs ADMU April 22 (Saturday) Venue: Lyceum College Time: 7am U16 vs Lyceum April 24 (Monday) Venue: San Beda College Time: 11am U16 vs DLSU With a team that features towers Kai Sotto and Geo Chiu and star guard Rence Padrigao, it's easy to have high expectations from a team with a core that's looking very good. But we do have to remember, this is a bunch of High School kids who's set to do battle against an Ateneo team that has a crop of experienced pieces, a Lyceum team that has monster CJ Perez, and a La Salle team that'...

On the afternoon of April 11, 2017, SPIN.ph reported that coach Goldwin Monteverde has resigned from his position as head coach of the Adamson Baby Falcons. Rumors of coach Goldwin's resignation has been going around High School basketball circles, so the news of the resignation didn't come as that much of a surprise for insiders. (Photo Credit: Hazel Siy) But for fans, the move came as quite the surprise. After all, the Baby Falcons were still projected to contend for a championship despite the controversial end that they had to their Season 79 campaign. They weren't losing that much key players to graduation, and the desire for redemption was the most important part in all of this. The fact of the matter is, Goldwin Monteverde could very well be going out of the Adamson basketball program. This move creates then a number of effects not just for the San Marcelino-based school, but also the rest of High School basketball.  1. The effect it has on the Adamson Ju...

(Photo Credit: SLAM Philippines) Basic Information Name: Unique Naboa Age: 18 School/Team: LSGH Greenies Years of eligibility left: 0 (Graduating)  Committed to: CSB Blazers Height: 5'8" Position: Point Guard Projected Position: Point Guard Quick Hits Strengths: - Strong body - Crafty with the basketball - Has great control for a Point Guard his age - High basketball IQ Weaknesses: - Height and lack of length - Lacks athleticism - Inconsistent outside shooting - Very limited upside Prince Rivero. Kobe Paras. Ricci Rivero. JBoy Gob. Those names are among the very best La Salle Greenhills standouts in recent memory. Prince and JBoy were both dominant bigs who were either too strong or too polished for High School big man to handle, while Kobe and Ricci were athletic freaks who jumped out of the gym. Unique Naboa doesn't fit any of those categories. He has a strong body, but he's by no means the physical freak that Prince was, nor the athlet...

(Photo Credit: KC Cruz) Basic Information Name: John Lloyd Clemente Age: 18 School/Team: NU Bullpups Years of eligibility left: 0 (Graduating)  Committed to: NU Bulldogs  Height: 6'3" Position: Small Forward Projected Position: Shooting Guard/Small Forward  Quick Hits Strengths: - Capable shooter from outside - Great at moving without the ball - Great size for a collegiate wing - Perfect example of a team player - High basketball IQ Weaknesses: - One on one defense needs work - Isn't able to completely use his athleticism - Needs to work on dribbling It's easy to brand a player as college-ready. It can be because he's physically superior compared to his peers. It can also mean that he was able to put up statistics which are incredibly impressive for someone his age. Or, it can be as simple as receiving a number of accolades. John Lloyd Clemente doesn't exactly fit the bill as any of those. He isn't physically superior by any m...

The SLAM Rising Stars Classic has long served as a breeding ground for some of the future stars of College Basketball. College mainstays such as Green Archer Aljun Melecio, Blue Eagle Thirdy Ravena and FEU Tamaraw Hubert Cani. These players were already sought after even before the Rising Stars Classic, but playing well in the game simply solidified their status as among the very best in High School hoops. (Photo Credit: Jaime Campos, Spin.PH) The same could be said for this year's iteration of the Rising Stars Classic, as UAAP Juniors MVP Juan Gomez de Liano was able to solidify his status as one of the best High School players in the country after his MVP performance in the game. However, it wasn't just Juan who was able to put on a show. Here are some of the other names who impressed in the Rising Stars Classic: Juan Gomez de Liano Of course, we have to talk about the Juan (*gets tackled*) who was crowned with the MVP plum during the all star game. That's ...

At the end of the day, we may call him one of the biggest what-ifs in Philippine Basketball. (Photo Credit: Spin.ph) The NBTC tournament this year has received quite some hype thanks to the reported involvement of Ron Harper Jr. (yes, the son of THAT Ron Harper). Sadly, Harper Jr. couldn't show up, so we had to look for someone to hype on elsewhere. The reality of it was, even when Harper was supposed to join the tournament, the guy who we were supposed to be hyping up was just lurking in the shadows. That player is none other than 6'9" forward, Kamaka Hepa. Kamaka Hepa is a 17 year old Fil-Am who plays for Jefferson High School. But since Hepa hailed from Alaska initially, he didn't receive much attention from the Filipino crowd. There were articles done on him by SLAM and SLAM Philippines, but those articles didn't create much traction for Hepa. So when news of him arriving in the country released, only some fans/analysts were excited for the prospec...