The Alaska Aces started making their move towards regaining their competitiveness in the PBA after executing a multi-player trade that involved prized playmaker LA Tenorio yesterday.
Tenorio, coming off a heroic performance with the Smart Gilas Pilipinas team in the recently concluded Jones Cup which the country won in Taipei, was involved in a complicated deal that will send the former Ateneo star to crowd-favorite Barangay Ginebra.
Tenorio, the MVP of the Jones Cup tournament, will be reunited with his old coach at San Miguel, Siot Tanquingcen. Tanquingcen dealt him away to Alaska a few years back in favor of Mike Cortez.
The deal, which was approved by PBA commissioner Chito Salud, will first have Ginebra’s Enrico Villanueva going to Barako Bull for Willie Miller, who, in turn, will be shipped to Global Port (formerly Powerade) together with the Gin Kings’ 2013 first round Draft pick for JV Casio. Casio and the Batang Pier’s 2015 second-round pick will then go to Alaska.
CEBUANO HONTIVEROS ALSO TRADED
Also traded in a separate deal were forward Hans Thiele and Wesley Gonzales, who will be going to the Petron Blaze for Cebuano hotshot Dondon Hontiveros.
“Although approaching the twilight of his career, we believe Dondon still has a great game and will open things up for us with his great shooting and occasional penetration,” said Alaska Aces general manager Joaqui Trillo in a statement released to the media yesterday. “Plus he is a good defender and has strong leadership skills.”
Hontiveros has been in and out with the Blaze Boosters due to injuries last season. In his Twitter account, Hontiveros said he was looking forward to playing well for Petron this year.
“Sorry Petron, didnt get to really be of help last year. Hoping it would be this year but things happen for a reason. Hello, hello Alaska Aces,” Hontiveros said in his tweet.
The Aces already beefed up its lineup by adding a couple of veterans in Nic Belasco and Eddie Laure, who are already familiar with Alaska’s system having played for the Aces before.
Contrary to earlier reports, the trade was not sparked by Tenorio’s participation in the Jones Cup.
OTHER TEAMS’ TURN
“We have been approached by many teams for LA and they have all been denied because we felt LA was an integral part of our team,” said Trillo. “However, looking forward, we also see the promise of JV and feel he can bring a lot to Alaska. So we are taking a leap of faith but a calculated one.”
It had been reported that Alaska management was not keen to lend its players to the national pool considering the sacrifices it has made supporting past national teams and given the Aces poor showing last season.
“We lent three of our key players to the Jones Cup tournament because we knew it was a big tournament and we are proud of the entire team’s accomplishment. But it’s also time that other companies step up their support of the national team as we have been doing so since the mid-90s,” said Alaska team owner Wilfred Steven Uytengsu in the press release. /copy editor brian j. ochoa and correspondent jonas panerio with reports from the inquirer