CONTRARY to live comments from fans during the PBA Season 49 Draft coverage, Mark Nonoy swore he was happy to be drafted by the Terrafirma Dyip.
“Hindi po totoo yun na malungkot ako nung Terrafirma nakakuha sa'kin. Ganito lang po talaga ang mukha ko, poker face lagi,” said Nonoy, two days after he was picked 10th overall in the 2024 Draft by the lowly Dyip.
"Di po ako kasi marunong ngumiti pag maraming tao, saka that time po, ang dami nasa isip ko sa sobrang saya," he added. "Ganoon lang 'yung face ko, pero alam ko sa sarili ko na sobrang saya ko nung tinawag ako."
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During the live online broadcast, fans took notice of Nonoy’s seemingly gloomy face when he was handed the Terrafirma team cap and ceremonial jersey.
On the contrary, he was on cloud nine after defying expectations and being picked in the first round.
“Sobrang overwhelmed lang po ako talaga nung na-pick ako sa first round, di ko po ni expect. I thought, second round or maybe third round pa po ako. Kasi ang dami pang malalaki at marquee players na di pa natatawag that time,” said the 23-year-old pride of Carlota City.
Nonoy bared that he is also excited at the opportunity to showcase his talent at Terrafirma, more so since the team just traded their starting point guard Stephen Holt to Ginebra as part of the Standhardinger deal.
“Nakausap ko po coaching staff kahapon at sinabi nga po nila na marami silang plans for me sa game. Sabi ko naman po, di naman po ako magde-demand ng playing minutes, basta po kailangan nila ako, ready ako,” he said.
Nonoy said playing for a team like Terrafirma will bring out the best in him - and his teammates - as they can gain the needed exposure playing against some of the big stars of other teams.
“Yun din po maganda kasi po if stacked ang line-up ng makakakuha sa'kin, mahihirapan po ako makakuha ng minutes. Pero dito po sabi sa 'kin ng coaching staff, malaki daw po role na ipapagawa nila sa kin.
“Basta ako naman po makatuntong lang sa PBA, masaya na ko. Super bonus na sa'kin yung masama ako sa first round lalo’t ang dami pong talent na pumasok sa batch namin, mostly Fil-foreign [players] at matatangkad pa,” he said.
Nonoy’s former coach at La Salle, Topex Robinson, only had good things to say about his former star guard.
“Never nagde-demand ng playing time 'yan. Subok ko 'yan,” Robinson recalled. "Kasi nung last year nya sa amin, namublema ako kasi napuno y'ung backcourt ko ng talent.
“Nagulat ako kasi si Mark mismo ang lumapit sa'kin at sabi, ‘Coach, alam ko masikip rotation natin sa gwardya. Don’t worry about me. Kahit lesser minutes ako, okay lang ako’,” added the UAAP champion.
Unsung hero
Robinson also shared that when he asked Nonoy to step up in the second round of the last season, he immediately made quite a difference, calling him the unsung hero of the Green Archers' championship run.
“Oo, hanga ako sa bata. Kasi kahit limited minutes siya nung first round sa'kin at nung kinailangan ko na siya sa second round at playoffs, nag-deliver siya,” he said. “In fact, isa talaga si Mark sa mga unsung heroes nung championship namin.
"The kid has the angst, the leadership and the cold-blooded outside shooting,” added Robinson.
Will Nonoy fit the system of Terrafirma?
“Definitely. Before the draft nga naisip ko bagay si Nonoy sa any team na mabilis ang play at kailangan ng hustle. Isa ang Terrafirma dun,” said Robinson while also rattling off teams like Ginebra, Rain or Shine and Nlex as other good options for his former guard.
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