ONE of the unsung heroes of NLEX in the PBA Philippine Cup bubble is Raul Soyud.
Behind Kevin Alas, Jericho Cruz, Kiefer Ravena and JR Quinahan, Soyud has been quietly efficient for the Road Warriors as he was on Wednesday against Rain or Shine when he scored nine points and pulled down nine rebounds.
The underrated 6-5 big man also shook off a minor injury in his right shoulder after getting entangled with Rain or Shine’s Beau Belga in the third quarter, drawing raves from NLEX coach Yeng Guiao.
“Wala nakakapansin masyado kay Raul kahit na napakaganda ng ginagawa niya,” said NLEX coach Yeng Guiao.
Guiao admitted he has been tough on the former University of the Philippines player in practice. He added veteran Quiñahan has also been mentoring Soyud since his playing time steadily increased from 10 minutes last season to 18.5 minutes a game inside the bubble.

Soyud is now averaging 9.88 points and 6.75 rebounds a contest.
“I think he is one example of a player who was really relegated to the end of the bench but worked his a** off to play the playing time that he gets. Actually, tanungin mo mga players, I’ve been harsh on Raul in practices. I demanded a lot from Raul kasi gusto ko, ma-elevate pa niya laro niya, mine-mentor [pa] siya ni JR.
“I guess umobra na naman ‘yung mga sigaw at mura ko kay Raul kaya gumaganda laro niya. That’s another product of my temper and my mouth, si Raul,” Guiao said.
Guiao said Soyud earned the breaks he is getting through his sheer hardwork.
“He has really worked hard for it on his own. Ang layo na ng narating ni Raul actually and hindi natin napapansin masyado ‘yung ginagawa niya,” said Guiao.
Get more of the latest sports news & updates on SPIN.ph