No Big J for Air21 against Magnolia; Express to trade Arwind?

By Musong R. Castillo
Inquirer
Last updated 02:47am (Mla time) 10/11/2007

Game Sunday (Araneta Coliseum)
4:30 p.m. -- Opening Ceremonies
6:30 p.m. -- Air21 vs Magnolia

MANILA, Philippines -- Robert Jaworski’s much-anticipated return to the Philippine Basketball Association is not about to happen -- at least for the coming Philippine Cup that opens Sunday.

The one-time MVP, many-time champion player and winner of four PBA titles as a player-coach has told Air21 team manager Lito Alvarez to let Bo Perasol handle the team as he takes care of personal business matters in the United States.

“He told me to have coach Bo continue handling the team because he (Perasol) is a good coach,” Alvarez said. “He will just have to take care of some business matters in the States and that we will talk formally once he returns.”

The Express collide with the Magnolia Beverage Masters, which took over from the San Miguel Beermen, in the lone opening game at 6:30 p.m. at the Araneta Coliseum.

Air21 had offered Jaworski a perfect vehicle to return to the PBA but the former Senator has yet to formally accept the coaching job.

Part of Air21’s offer is a lot of business opportunities for Jaworski with the company, which, according to a source interviewed by the Philippine Daily Inquirer a couple of weeks back, could amount to millions of pesos.

“I just told him that any time he wants to handle the team, the job is his,” Alvarez added.

Incidentally, Alvarez said that he is seriously weighing a proposal from Talk ‘N Text to part with one of its centers in exchange for two Express forwards coming from among Arwind Santos, KG Canaleta and Ranidel de Ocampo.

But any trade involving Santos could include a few repercussions because the cager is currently facing a bigamy suit.

The sophomore forward received a fatherly advice from PBA officer-in-charge Renauld “Sonny” Barrios on Tuesday, but that doesn’t mean the promising cager is off the hook.

Santos was advised by Barrios to settle the issue out of court and avoid a morality issue that already cost the job of commissioner Noli Eala a couple of months back.

“Right now, it’s not an apples to apples case,” Barrios told the Inquirer over the phone in explaining why his office is not treating the Santos case the way the league did on Eala’s situation.

“Until proven guilty (of bigamy), Arwind’s case is entirely different than that of ex-commissioner Eala,” Barrios added. “But if it is ruled with finality (by the Supreme Court) then that’s a different story.”

Santos is facing two lawsuits from Karyn Maye Umayon -- bigamy and lack of child support.

“The father in me told Arwind to immediately continue supporting his child,” Barrios added.