THE Phoenix Fuelmasters have relegated veteran guard RR Garcia and high-flyer Sean Manganti into their unrestricted free agent list in the first wave of player movements for the PBA balllclub since it appointed a new coach in Charles Tiu.
The league office received the notification relegating Garcia, 36, and Manganti, 31, to the Fuelmasters' UFAWR2S (unrestricted free agents with rights to salary) on Wednesday, two days after Tiu's appointment was announced.
READ Kwekuteye, Jazul, Garcia to be relegated by Phoenix to UFA: source
Both Garcia and Manganti have live contracts with Phoenix, meaning they will continue to draw salaries until they are picked up by another PBA ballclub or agrees to a buyout.
Thettps://www.spin.ph/basketball/pba/kwekuteye-jazul-garcia-manganti-yousef-taha-alejandro-released-by-phoenix-a800-20260120is not expected to stop there as more players are expected to be either released or traded in the coming days before the midseason PBA Commissioner's Cup unfolds in early March.
According to sources, more Phoenix players have been notified about their impending release and have been removed from the team's group chat.
Garcia, 36, is one of the longest-tenured players at Phoenix, having spent the past six seasons with the Dennis Uy-owned franchise as he winds down a 12-year career that also had stops at GlobalPort, Magnolia, Barako Bull, and San Miguel.
On the other hand, the 6-foot-5 Manganti was drafted by NorthPort in the first round of the 2019 draft and has been with Phoenix since 2021, arriving as an additional player in the Sean Anthony-Vic Manuel trade.
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