NORTHPORT faces Meralco on Thursday with the status of Robert Bolick still uncertain as the PBA Governors’ Cup resumes at the Philsports Arena.
The Batang Pier take on the Bolts at 6:45 p.m. with Bolick questionable for the ballgame.
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While NorthPort said Robert Bolick is out due to a hamstring injury - he missed the opening game - the star guard's contract is also expiring at the end of the month
NorthPort team manager Pido Jarencio said an offer has already been made.
“Nag-offer na kami kay Robert, hindi pa kami nagkakasundo. Basta kami, antayin lang namin hanggang end of the month,” said Jarencio.
“Siyempre, pag-aaralan niya at pag-aaralan namin ‘yung gusto niya. Nag-counter offer kami sa kanya,” said Jarencio.
NorthPort will retain the rights to sign Bolick when the contract ends since he is a restricted free agent. There are rumors though that Bolick has an offer overseas, particularly in Taiwan.
Amidst the contract negotiations, the Batang Pier suffered a 122-92 defeat over Converge on Sunday to begin their Governors’ Cup campaign.
NorthPort goes up against a Meralco team that is coming off a 105-87 victory over Rain or Shine. The Bolts will shoot for an early lead in the standings in the match-up against the Batang Pier.
Converge also eyes a share of the lead in its contest against Terrafirma at 4:30 p.m.
The FiberXers had a rousing debut with that lopsided defeat against NorthPort that turned out to be the largest winning margin in franchise history.
Converge though has made a change, bringing in Jamaal Eric Franklin to replace Ethan Rustbach, who has been relegated to the team’s injured/reserve list.
Franklin recently played for the Shanghai Sharks in China, and had brief stints with the Memphis Grizzlies and the Denver Nuggets in the NBA.
Terrafirma is coming off an offseason where it was able to keep Juami Tiongson through a contract extension and acquiring Kevin Ferrer from NorthPort in exchange of Joshua Munzon.