AFTER six years, vastly-improved center JP Erram and TNT are likely back in each other’s arms.
NLEX shipped the 6-foot-8 Erram to the KaTropa in a complicated three-team swap last Monday.
Under the terms of the trade papers sent to PBA Commissioner Willie Marcial for approval, TNT sent lanky 6-foot-6 Marion Magat to Blackwater along with a first-round draft pick in exchange for a first-round pick.
The Elite gave up two future picks in a package that also saw forward Anthony Semerad moving to the Road Warriors for Erram.
Blackwater completed the deal by trading the shot-blocking Erram to TNT in exchange for playmaker Ed Daquioag and a first-round pick.
NLEX confirmed the trade last Monday night.
“A three-way player trade proposal has been submitted to the PBA involving the TNT KaTropa, Blackwater Elite, and Poy Erram of the NLEX Road Warriors. We thank Poy (Erram’s nickname) for his hard work, sacrifice and dedication to our organization, and wish him the best as he continues his career in the PBA,” the Manny V. Pangilinan-owned ballclub said in a statement.
“As an organization, we continue to look towards the future and place the NLEX Road Warriors in a position for success in the PBA,” the statement added.
Erram suited up for Ateneo in the UAAP as backup to Greg Slaughter and was tabbed in the second round by the KaTropa (then known as the Tropang Texters) in the 2013 draft as the 15th pick overall but rarely saw action.
As a free agent, Erram was taken by the Elite, then an expansion squad, in the dispersal draft in 2014.
After playing for the Yeng Guiao-mentored Gilas Pilipinas side in the 2018 Jakarta Asian Games, Erram linked up with NLEX in exchange for Paul Desiderio and Abu Tratter last season. The Elite also received Francis Tamsi and TNT’s 2022 second-round pick while TNT got Michael Miranda and Blackwater’s 2022 second-round pick.
Erram, 30, gives the KaTropa the much-needed inside presence in their bid to win their first title since the 2015 Commissioner’s Cup.
He averaged 11.7 points, 7.8 rebounds, and a league-best 2.1 blocks per game for the Road Warriors last year.
NLEX expressed its gratitude to Erram for his contributions to the team apart from basketball.
“Our organization recognizes Poy’s contributions towards our team’s growth in 2019.
Beyond basketball, Poy has also lent his time and efforts to the advocacies and community-building activities of NLEX Corporation, from representing the team at the 2019 Panagbenga Festival, to lunches with NLEX employees,” the team said.
In another development, Rayray Parks Jr. has agreed to a one-year contract extension with TNT, which will now have five Gilas Pilipinas players in Jayson Castro, Roger Pogoy, Troy Rosario, Erram, and Parks.
