JUST a year ago, he was winning a championship in the NCAA.
Now, Jerick Balanza is doing the same in the PBA.
The 24-year-old guard considered himself truly blessed as he left Letran a champion player and started his career with Barangay Ginebra the same way following the Kings’ triumphant campaign in the Philippine Cup bubble.
Make that his very first conference as a pro as Asia’s first ever play-for-pay league only held a single tournament for the season owing to COVID-19 pandemic.
“Sobra-sobra yung blessings talaga,” he said. “Kasi nung rookie ako (2015) college ko nakapag-champion ako. Tapos bago ako nag-exit ng college, champion din.
“Ngayon panimula ko sa pro, champion na naman.”

Balanza, one of so-called ‘three Kings’ of Ginebra along with fellow rookies Arvin Tolentino and Kent Salado, was hardly as exposed as Tolentino though he played in 11 of the 22 games for the Kings inside the bubble.
But the lack of playing time hardly fazed him as being at Ginebra alone was already a big blessing for him.
Balanza was a second-round pick of the Kings in the 2019 draft.
“Nung naka-PBA ako, bonus na yung nag-Ginebra,” he said. “Pero ngayon bonus na bonus na ito, na nag-champion kami. Sobra na sa bonus ito.”
A bonus, indeed, considering the misfortunes he had to go through just to make this far.
Balanza had to undergo major surgery to remove a tumor in his brain two years ago, before returning to Letran and help the Knights win the NCAA men’s championship in 2019 with a huge upset of three-time defending champion San Beda in the finals.
And then when his rookie season was threatened by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Kings overcame all adversities and won the first-ever bubble championship in PBA history.
Balanza struggled to find the words as he looked back on all the good things that came his way one after the other.
“Sobrang grateful talaga ako sa lahat ng nangyari sa akin,” he said.
Balanza’s contract with Barangay Ginebra will expire by the end of the year. It wouldn’t come as a surprise if and when another bonus comes his way.
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