Phelps to the rescue

After three defeats in a row in the PBA Governors Cup, Phoenix coach Ariel Vanguardia figured it was time to pull the plug. Original import Marcus Simmons, known more as a defensive specialist than an offensive threat, was shown the pink slip and the Petroleum Fuel Masters brought in someone known as “El Destructor” in the Puerto Rican league.

Simmons, 28, averaged only 3.1 points in four years with the University of Southern California varsity so that was a clear indication of his orientation. He worked his way to a starting role with the Trojans because of his reputation as a lockdown defender. As a senior in 2010-11, he averaged a collegiate career high 5.1 points.

In the PBA, it’s almost a necessity for an import to score big numbers unless you’re a wide-bodied center named Pierre Henderson-Niles. Simmons, however, is no Niles and with Phoenix, his job was to pile up points, rebound and neutralize the opposing import. For a while, it seemed like Simmons was a nice fit for Phoenix. He shot 21 points against Meralco and 28 against San Miguel Beer. The problem was the Fuel Masters lost both games.

The roof finally caved in on Simmons when he coughed up only seven points in Phoenix’s 106-89 loss to Rain Or Shine last July 23. That was the end of Simmons’ story. “Actually, Marcus wasn’t bad,” said Vanguardia. “He was aggressive and a tough defender. But we needed an import who’s more of an inside guy. When Willie (Wilson) got hurt, we lacked a solid four. We didn’t need an outside-shooting three.” So a call was made to Eugene Phelps.

“I’ve been a facebook friend with Eugene the last three years,” said Vanguardia. “I followed his career in Mexico, Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico. I even tried to get him for the Dragons in the ABL but it was difficult to bring him out. I sent his stats to (former Talk ‘N’ Text coach) Bill Bayno to look over and Bill told me if Eugene was able to dominate in the Puerto Rican league against 6-10 guys, he’ll dominate in the PBA.”

Vanguardia’s first import option was former University of Kentucky forward DeAndre Liggins, Orlando’s second round pick in the 2011 NBA draft. Liggins, 28, played 57 games for Orlando, Oklahoma City and Miami in three NBA seasons. “Liggins was in the NBA Summer League,” said Vanguardia. “While waiting for him to finish up, we signed Marcus because Eugene wanted a guaranteed contract and we were holding out for Liggins. Eventually, Liggins signed with the Cleveland Cavaliers so we went with Marcus until we decided to bring in Eugene.”

In Phelps’ PBA debut against GlobalPort last Sunday, he erupted for 52 points in 38:45 minutes. His previous career high was 41 in the Mexican league. Phelps hit 15-of-21 free throws and also pulled down 16 rebounds and compiled six assists. In the third quarter, he took an elbow in the mouth from GlobalPort import Mike Glover and was rushed to the dugout for emergency treatment. The blow extracted a tooth and imbedded it into his lower lip. After the tooth was plucked out of his lip, he reported back for duty. The lip was later stitched up.

Phelps played four years at Long Beach State, the same school that produced former Boston Celtic and PBA import Glenn McDonald. A varsity teammate was Jerramy King, NLEX’s fourth round draft pick last year and now a TNT Katropa practice player. Phelps’ scoring stats weren’t impressive at Long Beach State as his average went from 3.7 as a freshman in 2008-09 to 8.1 as a sophomore to 9.7 as a junior and to 9.4 as a senior. But Phelps evolved into a scoring machine while plying his trade in Mexico where he averaged 21.3 points as a rookie in 2012-13.

Vanguardia said Phelps is no eccentric despite his “Pineapple” hairstyle. “He’s just a regular guy and a hard worker,” he said. “Before Phelps flew out, I asked a friend in Los Angeles, coach Leo Balayon, who was a former assistant coach of Lito Vergara at UP, to measure him. He was 6-5 exactly so we were a little nervous because of the height limit. Eugene was eventually measured 6-4 15/16 by the PBA. We signed him to a guaranteed contract and his girlfriend is arriving next week.”

Vanguardia said now that he’s picked up his first win with Phoenix, the challenge is to sustain the fire. “Our next game is against Mahindra on Aug. 12 and for us, that’s the game of the conference,” he said. “If we lose, we’re back at the bottom but if we win, it’ll push us up in the standings. I’ve told the guys it’s about earning everyone’s respect. We’re not yet respected in the PBA, we’re a young team, we don’t get the breaks in 50-50 calls. We hope the win over GlobalPort puts us in a position where we can begin to earn respect.”