NOTHING'S final until it's final, right?
That's the mantra now for Far Eastern University, as it seeks to secure the commitment of its coveted juniors players Cabs Cabonilas and Marc Burgos.
Though the Tamaraws still have the inside track when it comes to the recruitment of the blue-chip recruits, that won't stop the other rival schools from pursuing the two.
READ: SOURCES SAY FEU's HS pipeline currently dealing with a blockage
That's why more than a few green-and-gold insiders are holding out hope that the Diliman pipeline to Morayta continues, especially as they try to do their darndest to hold up the pride of playing for the FEU program.
"Sabi naman nila, gusto nila mag-stay, na ipapaalam daw sa parents," a SPIN.ph source said.
Cabonilas, the UAAP Season 88 juniors MVP and No. 1-ranked high school player by the NBTC, and Burgos, ranked No. 15, are young frontcourt players who many see as perfect fits to the current Tamaraws roster, one which is curreently bannered by seniors MVP Janrey Pasaol, Kirby Mongcopa, and Mo Konateh.
But as optimistic as the source is to the prospects, he was also aware of the current trend of players changing addresses, one the school dealt with when Veejay Pre transferred to the University of the Philippines.
That's why they're holding with bated breath until the two finally says the word that they will, indeed, stay.
"Ngayon, nasa amin pa rin naman. Sana tuloy-tuloy na," the source stated.
Cole's chance at the PBA
Cole Micek has been spotted at the Macau bench during the team’s first two games of the PBA Season 50 Commissioner’s Cup, as sources said the Black Knights recently appealed for his inclusion.
Micek, who played in Illinois-based University of St. Francis, was picked by Rain or Shine in the third round at No. 34 in the most recent draft, but was not signed by the team.
Prior to the draft, Micek played for the Macau Black Bears in leagues, including The Asian Tournament, and has gained a following as well outside basketball by moonlighting as a model.
The PBA, however, thumbed down Micek’s inclusion, as Macau, as a guest team, can only sign local and heritage players from mainland China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macau.
That was the case with other guest teams of recent past in the Bay Area Dragons and Hong Kong Eastern, where there were no Filipino players on the roster.
Macau head coach Garrett Kelly alluded to such appeal during a presser before their game against Converge.
“We met with the league office and asked for some room to allow us to be competitive, in particular with our Asian heritage players, because the ruling was, well, we're treating you the same as Hong Kong Eastern and Bay Area Dragons," he said.
"And as I said, we're not those teams. We're from Macau. Our pool of selecting players is very small. So we're looking for the league to help us a little bit, especially if this is going to be a long-term partnership, which we want it to be.” - Reuben Terrado
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