NORTHPORT will always be home to Arvin Tolentino.
Coach Bonnie Tan said the Batang Pier are ready to welcome back with open arms the 29-year-old forward if ever he decides to play again in the PBA.
READ: Seoul SK Knights sign Arvin Tolentino, drop Juan Gomez de Liano
“We remain open to welcoming him back should he choose to return in the future,” Tan told SPIN.ph, a day after NorthPort’s 94-70 loss to TNT in the PBA Philippine Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
READ: After losing Arvin, demoralized NorthPort held to 70 in loss to TNT
Tolentino was formally introduced as the new Asian import of the Seoul SK Knights just hours before the NorthPort-TNT game after finally signing a three-year contract with the Korean Basketball League ball club.
NorthPort support
While the move meant the Batang Pier lost its best player, Tan said they aren't ones who will hinder the development of their personnel.
He added the parting of ways was a mutual one for NorthPort and the sweet-shooting forward, who emerged as Best Player of the Conference during the Commissioner’s Cup.
“We have mutually agreed to part ways to allow him to pursue a rare and valuable playing opportunities abroad,” added Tan.
The move by Tolentino to take his act overseas came as a surprise, considering he just steered the Batang Pier to their latest semis stint in the Commissioner's Cup, and good things appeared to be on the horizon for the franchise which boasts of a young and athletic core, as a strong supporting cast emerged featuring William Navarro, Joshua Munzon, Cade Flores, Allyn Bulanadi, Evan Nelle, Fran Yu, Sidney Onwubere, and even Jio Jalalon.
His contract with NorthPort expired last April though, at which time, rumors also began to spread about offers for him to play abroad.
Tolentino only played for two games with the franchise in the season-ending conference - during its debut game against Terrafirma (97-75) before missing the next game against Rain or Shine (113-96) behind what he claimed was a hip flexor injury.
He returned to action in a 120-98 loss to Blackwater, and then missed the rest of the team's scheduled games, including a 131-106 loss to Barangay Ginebra on the final day of his contract with the Batang Pier.
Tolentino's final appearance in a NorthPort game came last May 9 in a 105-104 heartbreaker against Meralco in which Jalalon missed two crucial free throws in the endgame.
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