Toroman expects more from Japeth

MANILA, Philippines - Smart-Gilas coach Rajko Toroman said prized 6-9 center Japeth Aguilar played only 60 percent of his potential despite scoring a game-high 24 points, including 3-of-9 triples, in 35 minutes as the youthful national team blasted the Powerade PBA selection, 98-69, in a benefit exhibition at the Araneta Coliseum the other night.

If Aguilar just scratched the surface of what he can do on the court, imagine his dominance once the former Western Kentucky reserve gets his act together. That’s almost scary and Toroman said Aguilar, 22, will mature to become the country’s No. 1 player.

The problem is the PBA may bar Aguilar from suiting up for Smart-Gilas when the squad plays as a guest entry in the All-Filipino conference set to open Sunday. The PBA is miffed that Aguilar chose to play for Smart-Gilas after applying for the pro draft and getting picked first overall by Burger King last August.

“I’m hoping Japeth will be allowed to play not because I want our team to win in the PBA but because he’s the biggest future talent in the country and it’s a shame if the fans are deprived of the chance to watch him compete and he’s not given the opportunity to develop by playing against experienced pros,” said Toroman.

“It’s good for Japeth to be able to compete against PBA stars like Kerby Raymundo and James Yap. It’s for the benefit of Philippine basketball. All the fans want to see the team improve so we can be more competitive in international tournaments. Japeth is the type of player who needs to be pushed. I don’t think he will improve as quickly if he plays for a PBA team and that’s not a criticism of the PBA. It’s just that at the moment, Japeth is happy with his minutes, our practices and his teammates. He’s in a position to really get better with us.”

While Toroman was pleased with Smart-Gilas’ 29-point win over Powerade, he said there is a lot more work to do.

“We can play 40 percent better,” he claimed. “We had a lot of unforced errors and we can’t afford those when we play against the top teams in Asia. Japeth, for instance, didn’t find the best options when he had the ball. His game didn’t come instinctively and he had to think of what to do even if he played well. He has practiced with us only two weeks so he’s still adjusting to our system.”

Toroman singled out point guard Mark Barroca as another player who could’ve performed better.

“Mark’s not yet the same player he was with us last year,” said Toroman. “He needs time to play more, to play not for himself but for the team. We’re lucky that C. J. (Giles) provided balance in our inside-outside game.” Barroca compiled eight points, six rebounds and four assists while Giles collected 22 points, 16 rebounds and five blocked shots.

Toroman said Powerade had better individual players but Smart-Gilas played more as a team.

“I don’t think they had the chance to practice as a complete team before the game,” said Toroman. “We had a similar problem as Dylan (Ababou), J. R. (Cawaling), Aldrech (Ramos) and Mark (Barroca) just rejoined us the last one or two practices. But we played with a lot more respect for the game. We played as a team not for ourselves. We showed that we can get a good result if we put in the effort and hard work. It won’t work if when we don’t execute our first move, we start freelancing and players can do what they want. It’s important to be able to read the opponent’s defense. We followed our rules and played according to our system. I’ve always thought that our team that took fifth place at the FIBA-Asia Champions Cup in Jakarta this year was more competitive than Powerade in Tianjin.”

But Toroman said beating Powerade and winning in the coming All-Filipino conference are just small steps towards the ultimate goal of claiming the FIBA-Asia crown in 2011 for a ticket to the London Olympics.

Toroman did it with Iran. Now, he’s hoping to repeat the feat with Smart-Gilas.

“All we’re after is to improve our skills, level of discipline and team spirit,” he continued. “We’re keeping our focus on the Olympics.”

Despite the blowout win over Powerade, Toroman said he expects a stiffer challenge from the PBA teams in the coming conference.

“It will be definitely harder to beat the PBA teams that have played together long and are tougher as a unit,” he said. “Our team will be tested.”