LA Tenorio and Japeth Aguilar may soon be connecting with those dazzling lob plays at Ginebra, but for now Tenorio is the teacher and Aguilar the student.
On the day the trade went down making the athletic Aguilar the latest member of Ginebra, Tenorio took his new teammate aside during Gilas Pilipinas' training camp in Lithuania and wasted no time showing him the ropes.
“Nabanggit niya nga sa akin 'yung tungkol sa trade. Kaya sinabi niya na rin sa akin what to expect sa ensayo saka paano sila nagpa-practice,” Aguilar told Spin.ph shortly after Gilas' arrival on Tuesday from Lithuania.
Tenorio said he is happy to see Aguilar join Ginebra, in fulfillment of his dad's dream. Peter Aguilar suited up for the league’s most popular ball club under then playing-coach Sonny Jaworski.
“Sinasama-sama ko na siya saka tinuturuan ko na din siya,” Tenorio said. "Sa Ginebra mabibigyan kasi siya ng break."
Aguilar admitted the trade that saw him go to the Kings in exchange for rookie Yousif Taha and a first-round draft pick surprised him since he has been working double time preparing for the PBA Governors Cup in the hope of atoning for Globalport's poor showing in the first two conferences.
“Although looking forward ako to play for Globalport since masama nga pinakita namin last conference, nagpe-prepare na ako. Pero nangyari na yung trade so kailangan ko na lang uli mag-adjust kasi part talaga ng pagiging professional yung ma-trade,” said Aguilar.
On the other hand, Tenorio sees a lot of upside in the 26-year-old Aguilar, especially coming after Ginebra suffered a 0-3 Finals loss to Commissioner’s Cup champion Alaska Aces.
“I think yung height niya malaking bagay sa team kasi may ta-tao na sa gitna, saka shot-blocking niya so makaka-intimidate din siya,” said Tenorio.
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