YOU can’t have enough familiar faces to help you adjust to a new setting.
New Converge coach Aldin Ayo said he is open to tapping the services of former La Salle star big man Ben Mbala as a future FiberXers import in the PBA.
Ayo on Ben Mbala
Already reunited with his college stars in Jeron Teng, Abu Tratter, and Kevin Racal, Ayo welcomed the possibility of also linking up with the Cameroonian Mbala, who took the UAAP by storm by winning the league MVP in each of his two seasons with the Green Archers in 2016 and 2017.
“It will depend on management,” Ayo said in a guest appearance on SPIN Zoom In on Monday. “I can give the recommendations, but it’s up to the management and will depend also with the availability ni Ben.”
“But just in case lahat magtugma, well, why not?” he was quick to add. “He’s already familiar with my system. Pero ang dami pang moving parts eh before it can materialize, so we never know. But hopefully din, matuloy na.”
The 6-foot-8 Mbala once came close to playing as an import in the PBA, for Magnolia in the 2018 Governors’ Cup as an emergency option in place of the injured Romeo Travis.
Mbala, who turned 27 last July 13, last played for French team Aix Maurienne Savoie Basket as well as the Cameroon national team in the Fiba World Cup qualifiers.
Ayo, though, is focusing on the present, confirming the acquisition of NBA veteran Quincy Miller as the FiberXers’ import for the upcoming Commissioner’s Cup.
Miller, listed at 6’10”, is the 38th overall pick in the 2012 NBA Draft and has played for the Denver Nuggets, Sacramento Kings, and the Detroit Pistons.
“He’s long, a scorer, skilled. Excited kami na makuha siya at pag dating dito, tatrabahuhin namin kung paano maipasok kaagad siya dun sa sistema namin,” Ayo said of Miller, who is expected to arrive on August 22 after finishing his stint in Uruguay.
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