Is Keith Agovida For Real?
Thursday, 18 September 2008 6,998 Views / 118 Comments
Two weeks ago, the local collegiate basketball world was abuzz with talk about an 82-point game registered by one Keith Agovida, an 18-year-old forward of the JRU Light Bombers.
The first things that come to mind whenever you hear of such superhuman scoring efforts are “Was there any defense played?� followed by “Is this guy the next big thing?�
Let’s try to answer the first part. Agovida piled up those 82 points (on 36-of-50 shooting) against Malayan High School of Science (formerly Mapua High), the NCAA junior division equivalent of Cambodia in last year’s Southeast Asian Games basketball competition. Malayan High gave up 127 points to JRU, so obviously little or no defense was played.
Not that Malayan had any defense to offer. This is a team thrown together only a few months ago, primarily to avoid expulsion by the NCAA owing to their non-participation for the past several years. Their tallest player is no more than six feet. They lost to La Salle Greenhills by an embarrassing 137-26. In other words, they’re a very, very, very bad team. This isn’t a knock on them, it’s just the truth.
It’s against this backdrop that we must try to put Agovida’s 82 points in proper perspective. With the game all but over even before the opening tip, JRU coach Boy De Vera still chose to play his ward 37 out of a possible 40 minutes. In those 37 minutes, he made 36 baskets, so that comes out to around a field goal per minute.
Of course, at the end of the day, you still have to convert those baskets.
“Sid, 82 is still 82,� Joey Villar, who covers the NCAA for the Philippine Star, told me when I asked if Malayan even bothered to put a body on Agovida. “Hindi rin madaling gawin iyon.�
Agree. But if majority of his points were on lay-ups and short stabs, the 82 points might be more of a testament to his stamina and endurance rather than his scoring prowess.
There’s also the matter of his playing all but three minutes of the game, which implies that Agovida was left on the court specifically to shoot for a scoring record. This all the more gains credence when you consider Agovida scored 26 of the 82 in the final quarter, and 46 in the second half.
De Vera defends his decision, though, saying it was not a conscious effort on his part to pad his star player’s stats.
“Hindi. Hindi rin,� he replied when I asked him about it. “Pero alam na natin na scorer kasi ang per-game niya above 30 na eh. Normal na sa kanya ang mag-score eh. Pero nagkataon siguro na mahina ang kalaban. Sinuportahan naman siya ng mga kasama niya. Pero hindi lang points ang ginawa niya. All-around player, eh. Blocks, assists, rebounds. Nataon lang talaga na madaling mashootan ang kalaban.�
For his part, Agovida claims he was not aware that he had already scored that much.
“Nagulat lang po ako na ganoon na yung score ko, eh,� he said
“Hindi ko akalain na 82 na pala. Laro lang po ako ng laro,� added the soft-spoken kid who was discovered by a JRU scout while playing in a local tournament near his home in Pasig.
No doubt, the kid can put points on the board. He is the NCAA junior division scoring leader, averaging 35 points a game in the elimination round. But how will he fare at the next level? Here is where we attempt to answer our second question.
I asked three knowledgeable people about their opinion of Agovida. One is a veteran college and high school coach, the second is an official of a strong college team, while the third is the athletic director of a rival junior program in the NCAA.
The general consensus is he still very much a work in progress, and has his work cut out for him.
“The first thing you notice is he is very lean,� opines the team official. “His range is still limited. He has a good pull-up jumper but only from within 10-12 feet. But he’s very athletic.
“I think he’s only around 6’1� tops, so he will have trouble playing the three spot. He will need to develop an outside shot in college.�
The former coach agrees.
“He’s athletic. But suspect outside shot and does not have the body to bang inside. Relies on athletic prowess but needs to be taught the skills for college level. Still does not understand the game since undertaught but overcoached. Will leap over opponents and block shots. Has to learn a lot of skills.�
De Vera, though, has a more favorable opinion of his players’ areas for improvement.
“Sa ngayon, wala na. Katawan na lang ang kailangan i-build up niyan eh. Payat pa siya. He has leaping ability and grace. Very graceful kung gumalaw.�
The coach, who played for the Light Bombers from 1961 to 1965 and the Heavy Bombers from 1967 to 1970, admits, though, that senior basketball will be much tougher, and it’s not a sure thing that his player will be a star one day.
“Ibang level na ang seniors eh. So it remains to be seen. Siguro through his own [hard work] na iyan. And the coach kung sakali. Kung sinong maging coach niya, kung saan siya mapuntang school. Kailangan he has to work on his own.�
The athletic director feels otherwise, though.
“He will surely shine in college. Pero medyo alanganin lang ang height. He should focus more on dribbling. But he will be a star one day.�
Agovida ended his junior career last September 17 by scoring 19 points in a 93-94 Final Four loss to the Letran Squires, including only two in the second half. But the one statistic that stood out was his eight blocks. So could he be that rare scoring phenom who actually knows how to defend? Well, yes and no, if you ask the ex-coach.
“He’s a strong defender off the ball since he could come from the helpside (also know as the weakside, or the side of the court without the ball) and swat shots. But he has a hard time defending players with size since he could easily be pushed around due to his frailty. Not an impact player in his first year in college since he needs to bulk up. Has a lot of bad habits but correctible.�
And one of these bad habits is his tendency to commit foolish fouls. He fouled out in his last two games for the Light Bombers. In their loss to Letran Squires, the kid already had four fouls by halftime, prompting De Vera to bench him for the entire third quarter. He eventually fouled out late in the fourth in an ill-advised decision to lunge at the ball already well-protected by the opponent.
With his high school career over, talk of where Agovida will end up for college has inevitably surfaced. Of course, De Vera wants him to stay at home.
“Syempre nasa JRU siya ngayon, at hindi naman gugustuhin ng JRU na mawala siya. Ngayon, marami siyempreng nanliligaw. Nagka pangalan eh. He broke the record.�
Agovida will not say which college programs have contacted him, except to say that so far there have been at least four. This number will surely grow in the weeks to come. He also says he has not yet decided on anything, and for now he is saying all the right things about wanting to stay with JRU if possible.
So is he for real? I have to agree with De Vera’s assessment. It will all depend on where he chooses to go for college. The raw talent is there, no question about it. If he wants to be a complete player, I think it would do Agovida well to play for a coach who is also a teacher, one who is steeped in fundamentals. It might also not be a bad idea for him to spend his first year in the farm team of whatever school he chooses. That way, he can be brought along slowly and his skills developed properly.
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