Looking for Someone to Ban? Here’s Wynne Arboleda

It’s almost funny, now, the way the Burger King Whoppers front office was hurling threats of a lifetime ban at rookie Japeth Aguilar for refusing to sign a contract with the team that drafted him. If you’re looking for somebody to ban, someone who really deserves it, look no further than your own bench.

In what was one of the more surreal moments in PBA history, Burger King point guard Wynne Arboleda went charging into the front row of the stands and threw a kick and several punches at a fan, later identified to be Alain Katigbak, during a game against the Smart Gilas National Team. Katigbak, a fan of the Smart Gilas, was said to be hurling invectives at Arboleda and the Whoppers all game long. At some point, the highly physical BK point guard just cracked, and maybe put his career in jeopardy by going after the fan.

It was shades of Malice at the Palace, the infamous brawl that involved then-Indiana Pacers forward Ron Artest. Anybody who saw that frightening scene, where Artest was surrounded by panicked fans, throwing punches at whoever was close enough, would never forget it.

The Arboleda incident was much of the same. Wynne claims after the game that Katigbak was “not there to cheer for (Smart Gilas)” and was instead “looking for a fight.” TV replays clearly show he was not. When Arboleda attacked Katigbak, not once did the fan hit back. He threw up his arms over his head and defended himself.

Arboleda is also quoted as talking about fan responsibility. That was a topic widely discussed in the aftermath of the Palace brawl. And while I agree that there should be a certain level of decorum that spectators should observe, players like Arboleda should be the last people responsible to bring them to justice.

This issue is less about fan responsibility, and more on player responsibility. After all, this is the third time in the calendar year where a player has had an altercation with a fan. This, though, is the first time TV cameras witnessed a player putting his hands on the spectator and dish out physical abuse.

Arboleda can say what he wants about fans “crossing the line” with their comments. Both Marlou Aquino and Danny Ildefonso claimed that insults were directed to their families, which prompted them to action. But one can respond in the like, verbally, and we can all go on with our lives. Arboleda “crossed the line” literally when he went over the divider and into the stands and attacked Katigbak.

Utterly unacceptable.

If a fan were to rush onto the court and hit one of the PBA players, we would be crucifying the person on the spot. There is no reason for us not to do the same with Arboleda.

Ban him from the PBA.

Artest got away with a lengthy suspension. Teammate Stephen Jackson, who followed Artest to the stands, was given a suspension, too. Arboleda should not be allowed to get away with the same. The case is different. In the Artest incident, TV replays clearly showed the fan initiating the melee by heaving a cup of beer at Artest. That crossed the line. While I don’t condone Artest’s actions, I can understand it. It was, in terms we basketball fans can understand, second motion.

Arboleda’s was not. Ginebra team manager Allan Caidic, who was present at the venue, says that the fan truly was abusive with his language towards Burger King. But foul language and physical attacks are two different things. And especially so in the context of fan-player interaction.

Ban him from the PBA.

And consider how it all played out. Smart Gilas came into the game ready to play basketball. Burger King, it seemed, came ready for a fight. Arboleda, in particular, looked like he was out to end somebody’s playing career. There were four flagrant fouls called on the Whoppers in the first half of action. One was on Gary David, a call I disagreed with, actually. David hit his guy hard, but it was not a dirty play. The others, though, were.

Arboleda got away with only a regular foul when he clotheslined former DLSU Green Archer JV Casio on a drive. Later in the half, he threw an elbow to Casio’s face while fighting through a screen. That was his first flagrant foul. BK rookie Ronnie Matias got in on the action when he sent Smart Gilas captain Chris Tiu sprawling with a well-directed hit to the chest off a rebounding situation. And it all blew up on a play when Mac Baracael got out on the break with only Arboleda to beat. Instead of going up to challenge the taller Baracael’s shot, Arboleda chose to go under, what we like to call “sahod”, to keep the Smart Gilas forward from scoring.

At this point, no one except the staunchest of Burger King supporters were being fooled into thinking this was a basketball game. This was a message, plain and simple, to the Smart Gilas boys masquerading as men as a guest team in the rough-and-tumble PBA.

Don’t mess with us, Burger King said.

And it worked. Tiu later blogged that they “expected (the physicality), but we didn’t see it coming this bad” and “our players became hesitant to drive to the basket and dive for loose balls.” Burger King turned a 13-point Smart Gilas lead in the 2nd quarter into a 10-point victory at the end of the game. Tiu called it “a fitting initiation for us in our debut game in the PBA.”

It’s difficult to take Arboleda seriously, then, if and when he attempts to show remorse over his actions with Katigbak. If anybody was out there looking for a fight, it was Wynne.

And that’s no surprise, considering who was coaching him. Yeng Guiao was the coach once caught on TV giving instructions to his players to intentionally hurt the opposing team. Yeng Guiao was the coach once thrown out of the game after he elbowed Dondon Hontiveros when the SMB player hit a three in front of Guiao’s bench. Yeng Guiao was the coach who nurtured the now-notorious Jimwell Torion, famous for breaking Jimmy Alapag’s nose in garbage time. And yes, Yeng Guiao was the coach humiliated by Rajko Toroman and Smart Gilas during the charity game rout over Powerade Team Pilipinas.

Katigbak may have his faults. And so does the Araneta Coliseum management for not doing more to prevent the situation. Had they kicked the fan out when he began to be abusive, this whole thing would never have happened. Had the big guys in yellow, the supposed “bouncers”, stepped in earlier, Arboleda would not have had the opportunity to take so many cracks at Katigbak.

(Apparently, there’s a rule that the bouncers are not allowed to touch players.)

Regardless, Arboleda crossed the line, plainly and simply. He was wrong, and he deserves much more than a slap on the wrist for this. He is a professional basketball player. And he has a responsibility to remain professional. His actions last night, both on the court and off it, exposed him as a goon. Not a professional.

There is no place for people like that in this league. There is no excuse for those kinds of actions in this league. Don't give him a suspension or a big fine. His actions don't deserve that kind of leniency. This is an unprovoked player, going into the stands and beating up a fan. Yes, a fan. That could have been you, and that could have been me. Because apparently, for guys like Wynne Arboleda, that barrier that separates the stands from the court does not exist.

His actions don't deserve any leniency. Ban him from the PBA.