PBA trades are hit-and-miss affairs. Sometimes a team hits the jackpot, on other occasions, it's a dud. In this regard, observers are now asking: Did Magnolia err in trading for William Navarro instead of Joshua Munzon?
Multiple sources told SPIN.ph that Magnolia was torn on which of the two players to take as the trade deadine neared in the latter part of the season-ending Philippine Cup.
In the end, the Hotshots chose Navarro. The clincher, sources added. was Navarro's performance during a road game in Candon, Ilocos Sur where Navarro produced one of his best games. He had a double-double of 27 points and 13 rebounds in a 106-97 loss by the Batang Pier to the Hotshots.
READ Rafi Reavis belies posts of him bad-mouthing LA Tenorio
Munzon didn’t do badly. He finished with 14 points, five rebounds, and four assists.
Three days after the Candon game, the Hotshots decided to take Navarro – who was then the leading scorer of the Batang Pier - in exchange for Calvin Abueva, Jerrick Balanza, and a second-round draft pick.
A different set of players would have been shipped by the Hotshots had they acquired Munzon, according to sources.
With Navarro's acquisition, Magnolia had hoped to advance to the playoffs. But Navarro, with so short a time to adjust to the Hotshots' system, struggled fitting in and the team eventually failed to make it to the semifinals.
What was worse, the Hotshots were left holding on to practically nothing except the rights to Navarro who snubbed the contract extension offered by Magnolia. WIth him not signing, Navarro was free to determine his basketball fate.
What he did was accept an offer to play in the Korean Basketball League with Busan KCC Egis, a blow to the Hotshots who have been trying to build a strong team to make LA Tenorio's coaching debut a successful one.
READ New PBA team inherits enough NorthPort assets to be competitive
But Navarro's departure not only shocked his team, it also rattled the PBA and forced the league to introduce a new rule, a controversial one, by imposing a three-year ban on players who do not sign with ballclubs who hold their rights.
To fill the void left by Navarro, Magnolia needed to trade veteran Jerrick Ahanmisi to Terrafirma in exchange for Javi Gomez De Liano. People are now watchiing if this trade is the right one for Magnolia.
Munzon, meanwhile, has an existing contract with Northport and is expected to play for Pureblends, which is set to become the new owner of the Batang Pier franchise. - Gerry Ramos
FIVB Worlds tickets price drop
With one week remaining in the FIVB Volleyball Men's World Champioship, the Philippine National Volleyball Federation (PNVF) has finally come to its senses: it has decided to reduce ticket prices beginning in the round of 16.
Continued poor attendance has hounded the championship and the gate was hit particuarly hard with the departure of the Philippine team and crowd favorite Japan.
The decision to reduce the prices of tickets was described by one PNVF official as "a last resort," as thousands of seats remained unsold.
From here on, all tickets will be sold for half their original prices until the final match of the global conclave on Sunday.
The most expensive tickets that were once marked for as much as P13,800 are now down to just P5,500 for the Round of 16, P7,000 in the quarterfinals, P8,000 in the semifinals and P9,500 for the finals.
General admission (GA) tickets will now range from P250 to P375 from the original P1,500.
While FIVB president Fabio Azevedo continued to express his satisfaction with the country’s overall hosting of the event, rating it a ’10 out of 10,’ local organizers took it upon themselves to make the home stretch more accessible for spectators.
Taking a page off the Fiba Basketball World Cup playbook, students can now watch the games live with either upper box or GA tickets for free on a first-come, first-served basis.
Official figures show that the average attendance for the group stage was somewhere in the region of 4,000 to 5,000 fans per game in stadiums that normally hold 15,000 to 18,000 fans.
Organizers are hoping there would be a sharp increase in attendance in the last two rounds with the expected arrival of Filipino fan favorite Leila Barros of Brazil come the semifinal round.
With Barros, there is optimism that the Philippines can end its debut hosting of volleyball’s grandest event with a home run. The problem is, most young volleyball fans no longer have a clue who Barros is. - John Mark Garcia
From competitor to gracious Palawan host
EJ Obiena has turned fierce competitor to gracious host as he is set to bring his fellow pole vaulters to a short beach vacation in the world-famous El Nido resort in Palawan.
Save for Piotr Lisek, all seven international athletes who competed in the Atletang Ayala World Pole Vault Challenge will join Obiena in an R&R trip to Lio, the posh resort owned by Ayala Land.
The Filipino Olympian will be with his girlfriend Caroline Joyeux in the short vacation and they will be joined by Thibaut Collet, Ersu Sasma, Matt Ludwig, Oleg Zernikel, Austin Miller, and Menno Vloon to celebrate the conclusion of the 2025 season.
Ben Broeders, who did not compete due to back issues, will also be part of the group.
The trip is courtesy of Obiena's sponsor, Ayala Corporation, which was instrumental in bringing to the country the world-class event.
Surely, this is one pleasant leap for the participants. - RL
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