The Express enter their third season in the Philippine Basketball Association with much more vim and vigor as they parade a team beefed up by three former RP squad members.
In Jean Marc Pingris, Ranidel de Ocampo and Wesley Gonzales, FedEx actually has not only got young blood but additional ceiling and firepower for the 2004 PBA war beginning Feb. 22 at the Araneta Coliseum.
These three had been winners in the amateur ranks. Pingris won championship with Welcoat in the PBL, de Ocampo couples of crowns with St. Francis of Assisi College in varsity ball and Gonzales played with Ateneo in the UAAP and Pioneer Insurance in the PBL.
But not a few say FedEx is still Vergel Meneses’ team. How far FedEx goes may still depend on how well Meneses plays.
The 1995 MVP awardee remained FedEx’s main man last season, leading the team in scoring (15.9 ppg) and sharing assists honors with Egay Billones (3 apg) as the Express improved from their 14-19 win-loss showing in 2002 to 20-22 in 2003. In win-loss percentage, the team finished sixth, ahead of Sta. Lucia, Barangay Ginebra, Shell and Purefoods.
If Renren Ritualo and Roger Yap only become more consistent in providing offensive support, Billones and Wynne Arboleda peskier than ever while minimizing turnovers and John Ferriols and Omanzie Rodriguez more assertive at the paint, then the Express may nail their first championship faster than they hope for.
Jerry Codiñera may take a while before rejoining, still recovering from a colon surgery that had him losing more than 30 pounds.
"We’ll surely miss him because last year, he’s still our best player in terms of work ethics," said FedEx team manager Lito Alvarez.
Nonetheless, the team management and the coaching staff think they’ve really got a team that may perfectly fit into their brand of play - tough defense and fluid-motion offense.
For the PBA Fiesta Cup, the Express tapped former Auburn University standout Alvin Jefferson as their import. Alvarez said, "Actually, he’s more of a defensive player. Pero marami naman kaming offensive player, that’s why we opted to get Jefferson for defense and rebounds."
For this hungry team, further improvement looks very well achievable.
How will it react when the going gets rough as the season wears on? Time will tell.