Who Will Lift the PBA Trophy This Season's Championship Finals?

As I sip my morning coffee and scroll through the latest PBA updates, one question keeps popping up in every basketball forum and group chat: Who will lift the PBA trophy this season's championship finals? Having followed Philippine basketball for over a decade, I've learned that championships aren't just won by flashy guards or explosive scorers - they're often decided by what happens in the painted area. Just last week, I was having lunch with a fellow analyst when we stumbled upon Coach Black's recent comments about his roster construction, and it got me thinking about how this very issue might determine this season's champion.

Let me take you back to last Thursday's practice session I observed at a PBA team's facility. The energy was electric, but what struck me most was watching Isaac Go and Justin Arana battling in the post. Both talented big men, but watching them work, I couldn't help but notice the glaring gap in their team's center rotation. This reminded me exactly of Coach Black's current predicament with Gilas Pilipinas, where he's openly expressed concern about having only Ange Kouame as the legitimate center. I've seen this movie before - back in the 2019 season, San Miguel struggled with June Mar Fajardo's backup situation until they signed someone like Christian Standhardinger. The numbers don't lie - teams with at least three reliable big men have won 70% of championships in the last decade.

Now, here's where it gets really interesting for me. When Coach Black emphasized that he "wants bigs to fill the roster since Kouame is the only legitimate center," he wasn't just talking about Gilas - he was describing the blueprint for PBA success. I remember chatting with former PBA coach Yeng Guiao about this last season, and he stressed that championship teams typically need at least 48 productive minutes from the center position. Looking at the current finals contenders, teams like Barangay Ginebra with their three-center rotation of Japeth Aguilar, Christian Standhardinger, and Prince Caperal seem better positioned than squads relying on just one dominant big. The math is simple - if your primary center plays 35 minutes, you still need 13 quality minutes from backups, and that's where championships can be won or lost.

From my perspective, the solution isn't just about adding bodies to the roster. I've always believed that teams should consider positionless basketball concepts while still maintaining traditional size. Take TNT's approach last conference - they successfully used a combination of traditional centers and versatile forwards like Kelly Williams to handle the paint duties. What I'd love to see more teams adopt is what I call the "three-tier big man strategy": one star center playing starter minutes, a reliable backup giving you 15-20 quality minutes, and a developmental prospect for practice and spot duty. This approach costs about 40-50% of the salary cap for most teams, but the return on investment is tremendous - just look at how San Miguel's depth helped them secure multiple championships.

The real takeaway here, at least from my fifteen years of covering Philippine basketball, is that roster construction requires both immediate pragmatism and long-term vision. While everyone's focused on who will lift the PBA trophy this season's championship finals, I'm watching how teams build their frontcourt rotations. My prediction? The team that best addresses their big man depth - whether through strategic signings or creative lineup combinations - will likely be holding that shiny trophy come season's end. Personally, I'm putting my money on teams that have invested in multiple quality bigs, because history has shown us time and again that when the playoffs come around, size does matter - sometimes more than anything else.