JAMIE Malonzo falling to the lap of Marinerong Pilipino came as a shock, even for coach Yong Garcia.
"Hindi namin inakala na makukuha namin," said the soft-spoken mentor.
Malonzo, the 23-year-old Fil-Am who played for one UAAP season with La Salle, was the most sought after talent in the 2020 PBA D-League Draft and was tipped to be picked first by AMA Online Education.
However, a last minute change of heart led to the 6-foot-6 forward landing to the Skippers' camp, giving them a valuable piece as they seek to redeem themselves from a bridesmaid finish in the Foundation Cup last season.
Yet for Garcia, Malonzo's selection was the cherry on top of the sundae as Marinerong Pilipino got every talent it was eyeing from the pool.
"Masaya kami kasi yung ina-eye naming players, nakuha namin. Talagang sila ang mgaplayers na tingin namin makakatulong sa Marinerong Pilipino," he said.
Aside from Malonzo, the Skippers also got Joshua Torralba and Jollo Go of La Salle, James Spencer of UP, Darrell Menina of University of Cebu, and Miguel Gastador of University of San Jose-Recoletos.
Garcia believes those acquisitions will be huge as the only club in the field in the Aspirants' Cup.
"Malaking tulong yun dahil talagang tinitignan namin, kailangan namin magpalakas," he said. "Karamihan ng teams, school-based so kailangan yung mga beterano namin, gumanda yung samahan with the fresh legs like Malonzo at Torralba."
"Hopefully, makapag-form kami ng maayos na team na kaya sumabay sa takbuhan ng school-based."
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