PBA: The imports of the 2014 Commissioner’s Cup - part one

The 2014 PBA Commissioner’s Cup starts on March 5, and with it comes another slate of imports to boost the lineups of the competing teams.

The Philippine basketball scene boasts of some of the most zealous fans, and imports are always under a lot of pressure to take starring roles on their teams. However, in contrast to last season, when teams could bring in imports of unlimited heights, Philippine Cup cellar-dwellers Air21 and Meralco can have imports up to 6’11” tall, while the rest of the teams are capped at 6’9”.

This season’s crop has some familiar faces returning to Philippine shores, and a host of new players looking to make their mark. Who did your favorite team bring in, and how does the import fit with the players already on the roster?

Read on for the imports of the Air21 Express, Alaska Aces, Barako Bull Energy Cola, Barangay Ginebra San Miguel and Meralco Bolts.

Part two contains the imports of the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters, San Mig Coffee Mixers, San Miguel Beermen, Talk 'N Text Tropang Texters and GlobalPort Batang Pier.



Air21 Express – Hervé Lamizana (6’10”, Center)
Twitter: @bigswerv_1

The Franz Pumaren-helmed Express boosts its front court by getting this big man from the Ivory Coast. Hervé Lamizana is an experienced veteran with years of international experience in Europe, China, and Taiwan, and he looks to form a potent twin towers combination with the ageless Asi Taulava.  

Lamizana grew up in New Jersey, playing high school and college ball there. After graduating from Rutgers University and going going unselected in the 2004 NBA Draft, he took his talents to Europe, playing for Türk Telekom. Soon after, he played for professional teams in Israel, South Korea, China, and Puerto Rico, before going to Taiwan to reinforce the Yulon Luxgen Dinos in 2013. There, Lamizana had a very productive 20-game run, norming 21.8 points, 12.3 rebounds, 1.2 steals, and 3.3 blocks per game, while shooting 73 percent from the line, an impressive number for a big man.

The 33-year-old was also one of the key players Ivory Coast national team in the 2010 FIBA World Championship held in Turkey, and more recently was a standout in the 2013 FIBA Africa Championship, though his side, despite being the hosts, fell a game short of booking a return ticket to the FIBA World Cup.

Prior to coming to the Philippines, Lamizana played for the Sichuan Blue Whales of the Chinese Basketball Association, averaging 13.8 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 1.5 blocks while shooting 74 percent from the line. He runs the floor well and has a decent handle. With him and Taulava down low, expect things to open up for the likes of Joseph Yeo and Mark Cardona from the perimeter.




Alaska Aces – Robert Dozier (6’9”, Forward)
Twitter: @Dozier_Rob

The Aces bring back their import from last season’s Commissioner’s Cup, Robert Dozier. He led the Aces in the Finals of that conference, sweeping Barangay Ginebra 3-0, and winning Best Import honors. He culminated his first stint in the Philippines with a dominant 20-20 line: 27 points and 20 rebounds, while adding seven assists, and six blocks.

A former teammate of Derrick Rose at the University of Memphis, Dozier was the last player selected in the 2009 NBA, by the Miami Heat, but he went to play in Greece for that season after not getting a regular season pick-up. Dozier most recently had his feet in the NBA scene in 2012, when joined the Heat’s Summer League team, but he was cut before the start of the season, and toiled in the top Spanish leagues until he joined Alaska.

Dozier’s dominant run last year, coupled with the fact that the Aces are largely unchanged from last season, has the Gatas Republik thinking repeat. However, it remains to be seen if he is the antidote to the team’s defensive woes from the Philippine Cup, or if the squad will be able to build off the momentum from their late run to earn the eighth seed and take a game away from Barangay Ginebra.




Barako Bull Energy Cola – Joshua Dollard (6’7”, Forward)

Barako Bull Energy Cola is bringing in Joshua Dollard to replace Dwayne Chism as their import, after the latter failed to secure a release from the pro league in Hungary.

Dollard is a former Auburn Tiger who averaged 10.9 points, 5.8 rebounds, 1.2 steals, and 0.7 blocks per game in two NCAA seasons, and was the team’s leading scorer and rebounder in his sophomore season. Dollard redshirted the 2007-08 season after transferring to the University of South Carolina Aiken for the 2008-09 season. Dollard only played one season at USC Aiken, but led the team in double-doubles with averages of 15.3 points, 7.4 rebounds, 0.7 steals, and 0.8 blocks a game. Dollard then left the team after that season to pursue his professional career, beginning in Europe.

Dollard’s overseas experience brought him to Switzerland for a season, before heading back to North America to play for the Halifax Rainmen in the IBA-PBL league (a U.S. and Canadian league) where he got more burn, averaging 17.9 points in nearly 30 minutes a game. Dollard also spent time playing in the Dominican Republic, Greece, the Czech Republic, Turkey, and Colombia, before most recently playing for UU-Korihait in Finland and norming 20.7 points, 8.0 rebounds, and 1.2 steals.

Barako has a tendency to get undersized imports more known for their shooting skills than their post game, and Dollard looks to be the latest in that mold. They’ll gladly accept him if he can put the ball in the hoop a lot, what with their offense revolving around JC Intal and Ronjay Buenafe last season. However, it also means Dorian Peña and Mick Pennisi will be tasked to guard the imports of the other clubs, and the team does not have a lot of depth behind those two.


Read on to learn more about the imports of Barangay Ginebra and Meralco:

Barangay Ginebra San Miguel – Leon Rodgers (6’7”, Forward)    

Barangay Ginebra adds Leon Rodgers, opting for a slightly smaller import in the hopes of complementing their two big men Greg Slaugther and Japeth Aguilar.

At 33-years-old, Rodgers is tied with Lamizana as one of the oldest imports. However, the former Northern Illinois University standout (with collegiate averages of 21.3 points, 1.2 three-pointers, 8.5 rebounds, 2.2 assists, 0.6 steals and 0.7 blocks) boasts of one of the most extensive international pro basketball resumes as well.

Rodgers started out his pro career in Europe, playing for teams in Germany, France, and the Netherlands, winning multiple MVP and All-Star nods in the Dutch league. He played in Europe until 2008, before joining the Jilin Northeast Tigers in the Chinese Basketball Association.

Rodgers thrived in China, where he averaged 34.7 points, 8.5 rebounds, and 3.4 assists, playing with the same team until 2010. He then landed with several South American teams, and put in some more time in China and the U.S. minor league IBA-PBL. Last season, he returned to the team that first gave him his shot in China, continuing his high-scoring, sharpshooting ways with the Tigers, averaging 28.8 points with 3.5 three-pointers a game, and adding 7.5 rebounds and 3.1 assists.

What Rodgers lacks in defensive stats in his pro career, he makes up for in sheer offense, with an ability to shoot the lights out. Opponents will already struggle to cover Ginebra’s pair of big men, but now they’ll also have to account for Rodgers beyond the arc as well.




Meralco Bolts – Brian Butch (6’11”, Center)
Twitter: @Brian_Butch

The Meralco Bolts finished in the bottom two in the last conference, and made the most out of the higher import height ceiling that they got, adding the tallest import this season, center Brian Butch. A 2003 McDonald’s All-American, Butch played collegiate ball at Wisconsin, and normed 12.4 points, 6.6 rebounds and 0.8 blocks in only 24.6 minutes a game in his senior season.

After going unpicked in the 2008 NBA Draft, Butch looked outside the U.S., and played a few games in China before moving to Germany and Greece. Butch soon got called back to North America to play for the Bakersfield Jam of the NBA D-League, winning D-League All-Star honors and the All-Star MVP in 2010.

Butch joined the preseason teams of the Denver Nuggets in 2010, but sustained an season-ending injury that sidelined him until 2011. He’d make his comeback by representing the U.S. in the Pan American Games in 2011 and helped that team win bronze, before returning to the NBA D-League with the Bakersfield Jam. He played three more seasons with the Jam until February this year, when he was traded to the Fort Wayne Ants, figuring in eight games for his new team before agreeing to play for Meralco.

Butch peppered his D-League stint with appearances on several NBA Summer League teams, and most recently played for the preseason team of the Utah Jazz in 2012-13. He normed 14.0 points, 8.8 rebounds, and 0.7 blocks over four seasons in the D-League, and was a member of the D-League First Team in 2013.

PBA-wise, Butch gives Meralco an upgrade down low, after progressively shortening their leash on 6’7” Rabeh Al-Hussaini as the Philippine Cup went on. He can also be a great complement to the likes of Danny Ildefonso, Reynel Hugnatan and Cliff Hodge, as the locals will undoubtedly thrive with all the attention the big man will draw.   - AMD, GMA News