ARVIN Tolentino still has a year left in his contract with Northport, but hinted he's clueless on what awaits for him with the franchise.
“Moving forward, I’m with Northport, until what's gonna happen. So we’ll see,” he said as the Batang Pier ended their season in a whimper following the team’s failure to advance to the PBA Philippine Cup playoffs.
There’s been a huge interest in the 28-year-old forward after an impressive season with Northport in which he inherited the mantle of leadership of the franchise after the decision of high-scoring Robert Bolick to leave the team.
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Tolentino emerged as the go-to-guy of the Batang Pier and had been a strong contender for the Best Player of the Conference for both the Commissioner’s Cup and Philippine Cups.
Until the Batang Pier’s unexpected downfall, Tolentino was running second to Bolick in the scoring race of the all-Filipino conference and in the Top 3 in the race for the BPC award.
After a 4-1 start, Northport lost five straight games and six of its last seven. Its last shot of making the next round was likewise stymied after losing to Terrafirma in a one-game playoff for the last quarterfinals berth.
“Nabitin lang siguro ng kaunti,” he said of the team’s campaign.
Nonetheless, Tolentino said it's one learning experience the young Batang Pier will bring with them onwards.
“It’s a great experience for us especially for my teammates. As early as this sa part ng career nila, experiencing this will be good for them moving forward,” he added. “We just have to learn and grow from this experience. But we’ll be OK.”
Tolentinosaid his contract with Northport will be until next year, and so far no contract extension has been talked about.
Contract talks up
“I still have one more year,” Tolentino disclosed. “Wala pa naman (extension), siguro dahil ongoing pa yung season. I guess after ng season ng PBA, we’ll have a talk.”
For now, the Northport star said he’ll just enjoy the off-season break with his family and loved ones.
“Spend time with my kids, my wife, my family. And I don’t know what’s going to happen,” he said. “Manonood muna ako ng playoffs. Playoffs ng PBA, playoffs ng NBA. So basketball pa rin.”
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