MAGNOLIA made the biggest move so far in the PBA offseason, acquiring the signing rights of Javi Gomez de Liano from Terrafirma in exchange for Jerrick Ahanmisi and the Hotshots' second-round pick in the coming draft.
The trade, approved by the PBA Commissioner's Office on Friday via letter sent to all member teams, is the first major personnel move of the Hotshots since bringing in a new coach in LA Tenorio to replace Chito Victolero.
SOURCES SAY Deal in the works for Javi GdL's PBA comeback
Gomez de Liano, 27, is coming off a stint with the Anyang Jung Kwan Jang Red Boosters in the Korea Basketball League, although his PBA rights belonged to Terrafirma which acquired him in a trade with Barangay Ginebra in 2022.
The 6-foot-3 forward now brings fresh blood and size to a Magnolia team that parted ways with veteran big man Raffi Reavis aside from losing new recruit Will Navarro, who signed with Busan KCC Egis in the Korean league.
SPIN.ph sources bared the trade was partly in response to a trade demand by Ahanmisi, who was picked in the first round of the 2021 draft at 10th overall after an impressive career at Adamson but never really got a big break at Magnolia.
Now he's on the move, although not exactly to the destination he desired.
The deal also meant the trade moratorium imposed on Terrafirma has been lifted. The Commissioner's Office had previously barred the Dyip from entering any deals while talks were ongoing for the sale of the long-suffering franchise.
Deals with two potential buyers both failed to push through. The league has since announced that Terrafirma will continue to field a team next season, although details on the team's make-up remained vague.
On the other hand, Javi's arrival isn't expected to be the last for the Hotshots as they build up for Tenorio's head-coaching debut in the league after a stellar playing career with Alaska, SMB, and Ginebra.
Before that, the league allowed Terrafirma veteran Stanley Pringle to sign with Rain or Shine, but only because he was already an unrestricted free agent.
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