PHOENIX needs a legitimate center for the team to rise under new coach Willy Wilson.
For the newly-appointed tactician, the Fuel Masters have a good combination of rising stars and veterans—and a big man in the middle can spell the big difference in their bid in the PBA’s 50th season set to kick off on Oct. 5.
“If you look at our line-up, top to bottom, we’re really lacking that true center. Obviously, we’re not going to get a June Mar Fajardo, but if we can get somebody that can at least give them a little bit of problems defensively, then that would be very, very welcome to us,” Wilson said. “If not, it’s all about getting the best available talent in the Draft and working with that and we have talent on the roster. We have a lot of talent on the roster. I think we have the best power forward in the PBA today, the most complete in Jason Perkins, and we have rising stars in Tyler Tio, (Kenneth) Tuffin, and (Kai) Ballungay.
“Then we’ve got a whole bunch of good three guys. I want to talk about Sean Manganti, Raffy Verano, and guys like that and then some vets in RR Garcia and JJ Alejandro. So, we have a good mix and a good combination of guys, and it’s just them being able to work together, find out what it feels like to win together consistently,” he added.
Wilson, 45, inherited the coaching job from erstwhile strategist Jamike Jarin, who was named consultant of the Dennis Uy-owned franchise.
The belief in their system will also be an integral part of their campaign, according to the former 14-year pro league journeyman.
“I think that’s the key, because going back to the teams that I played for, you’d get down, but you never thought that you would lose the game,” Wilson said. “You always had that belief in each other and in the system that we’re going to pull out the win.”
With the annual rookie Draft set for Sept. 7, Wilson has one slotman in his wish list—6-foot-10 Fil-Am Quentin Millora-Brown—although the Gilas Pilipinas prospect is uncertain to throw in his name in the proceedings, at least this year.
“Puwede kong sabihin si QMB. I think obviously he’s the center that everybody wants,” he said. “Obviously, we don’t have a complete list, so I can’t really throw any names out there. Just add more ceiling to the team so that we can be on that level.
“Look at Converge with (Justin) Arana and (Justine) Baltazar. We want to be able to height-wise, be able to match up with them.”
