WHILE perennial contenders Ginebra, San Miguel Beer, TNT, and Magnolia are seen by armchair pundits as the teams to beat in the season-opening PBA Commissioner’s Cup, new Meralco coach Luigi Trillo is convinced the Bolts have what it takes.
“Our goal is always to play at our best in order to get an opportunity to win,” Trillo said during the pro league’s media day at the One Esplanade in Pasay. “I look at the other teams and we are right there.

“We tried to build the right way trying to get it through the draft, we tried to build our culture. We always wanted to be there. We have the tools,” he added.
Trillo, who took over at the helm of Meralco from Norman Black last May, is counting on 6-foot-8 Nigerian American import Suleiman Braimoh to provide the much-needed boost.
“Excited to have him (Braimoh), I think we’ll work closely with him, and I think he brings a lot to the table. Su has been a vet. He’s about 33 or 34 years old, played in Israel and also in Japan,” Trillo said of their second choice after original reinforcement Feron Hunt failed to prove his worth.
“He’s a guy who does a little bit of everything well… He’s more of a four but he can also spread it out so he, indeed, does a little bit of everything. His character is also very good. In the two days that I saw him, I saw him as a leader, too.”
The new cage wars in Asia’s first play-for-pay league opens on Nov. 5 with the 47th Season Leo Awards taking place before the formal opening ceremony and followed by the TNT-Magnolia showdown at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
The highly anticipated clash pitting the defending champion Kings and the Tropang Giga will highlight the Dec. 25 double-header that also features a showdown between the Beermen and the Phoenix Super LPG Fuel Masters at the Big Dome.
Meralco makes its debut when it battles Rain or Shine on Nov. 8 at the PhilSports Arena in Pasig.
The Bolts are expected to lean on veterans Chris Newsome, Allein Maliksi, Chris Banchero, Cliff Hodge, Bong Quinto, Raymond Almazan, and rising star Aaron Black anew.
Meralco also got big man Norbert Torres from the Elasto Painters in exchange for Mac Belo in the off-season and signed rookie center Brandon Bates, tabbed No. 8 overall in the last Draft.
Trillo’s charges toughened up in the Doha International Basketball Championship last September where they wound up with a 1-4 slate for seventh.
The Bolts will also see action in the EASL next month as a replacement for Ginebra.
“We want our best there. We understand why Ginebra could not make it. Sa PBA, tulungan iyan. We’re excited to be one of the teams that will be part of the EASL,” Trillo said. “It’s good for Philippine basketball because those teams are playing with two imports.
“Sa atin kasi, one import lang but the idea of being exposed to all these countries is good even though I think we’re at a disadvantage. As time goes by, we will find ways to get better.”