BLACKWATER continued to acquire former Far Eastern University talents after getting Ron Dennison in a trade on Thursday.
Dennison was obtained by Blackwater following a trade that sent Brian Heruela to Phoenix Pulse, becoming the sixth player from FEU in an Elite roster that has gone through a revamp under new coach Nash Racela.
Dennison joins holdovers Mac Belo, Mike Tolomia and Carl Bryan Cruz, along with draftees Richard Escoto and Hubert Cani with the Elite. Racela, incidentally, is a former coach of the Tamaraws in the UAAP.
But Racela, who guided FEU to the 2015 UAAP title, said there is no conscious effort to get his former players at Blackwater.
“There is no intention to do that. Nauna pa nga sila dito before I came in. Blackwater already had three FEU guys in their team,” said Racela following Friday’s practice at the Aero Center in Quezon City. “It just so happened that in the draft, we were able to get Escoto and Cani because they were both available.”
“Ito namang huli, si Dennison is from a trade, he was put on the table kaya naman nangyari ‘yun. No intention to do that,” said Racela.
Incidentally, Belo, Tolomia, Escoto, and Dennison were part of the 2015 team that captured the UAAP title at the expense of National University. Other members of that team who are now in the PBA are Roger Pogoy, Russel Escoto, and Raymar Jose.
However, it will still take time before the former FEU players will be complete in Blackwater practice. Cruz recently underwent a surgery after sustaining a torn meniscus, while Escoto is still fulfilling his commitments with Iloilo in the MPBL.
Racela, however, admitted having former FEU players on the roster will be a big help as the Elite start afresh under the former TnT KaTropa coach.
“It’s a very positive thing for a coach when you have players who are familiar with your style and the things that you do especially now that at this point in time, we explain everything to the other players. Doon sila nakakatulong talaga,” said Racela.
Racela added the acquisition of Dennison will be a big boost to Blackwater's defense.
“We are trying to put a team that emphasizes on defense,” said Racela.
Even with the abundance of ex-FEU players, Racela made it clear there is no plan to get more former Tamaraws.
“Again, wala. It’s not part of the immediate part,” said Racela.
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