MERALCO will go down as the first opponent of Titan Ultra in its existence as a PBA ballclub, and the Bolts expect the Giant Risers to be a handful for Wednesday’s clash in the 50th Season Philippine Cup at the Ynares Center-Antipolo.
Titan Ultra acquired the NorthPort franchise during the offseason, inheriting the Batang Pier roster led by Joshua Munzon, Calvin Abueva, and Cade Flores, and drafted Chris Koon at No. 4 before the sale.
“They have some weapons,” Meralco coach Luigi Trillo said on the eve of the match-up against Titan Ultra. “I think they have big wings – Munzon, Abueva, and Koon.”
READ: Titan mulls trade option as deal with Slaughter a 'long way off'
Titan Ultra also signed free agents Von Pessumal and Aljun Melecio, and traded for Ato Ular and Jeo Ambohot during the offseason.
“They have some undersized 4s in Flores and Ular but I think that’s their strength. They can switch defensively, can slip off screens, they crash the boards well. They have a ton of guys who can hit the three- and four-ball," he said.
“Pessumal may not have played a lot like (Arvin) Tolentino but here, he will get opportunities. So will Melecio, Fran Yu, and Ambohot. Everybody is going to be aggressive to start the season."
Johnedel Cardel returns as PBA head coach after taking over the reins at Titan Ultra, which perhaps has a better roster than his last stint with Terrafirma.
“Coach John led Terra to the playoffs with (Stephen) Holt before, and he will have a deeper nucleus now,” said Trillo.
Trillo stressed the importance of a good start in their 5:15 p.m. match-up on Wednesday as Meralco begins a stretch of five games in 11 days in the PBA before the Bolts leave for Okinawa, Japan for an EASL game against Ryukyu Golden Kings on October 22.
“Then we come back again to two more games back-to-back,” said Trillo.
Chris Newsome plays his first game with Meralco since signing a fresh three-year contract extension after he became an unrestricted free agent.
Allein Maliksi is also expected to play for the Bolts after only seeing action for two games during the 49th season due to a back injury.
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