JACOB Cortez will continue his father's legacy — and soon carve his own — in a high-profile move to the De La Salle Green Archers.
After leading San Beda to the Promised Land in NCAA Season 99, the young Cortez has ultimately decided to take his talents to Taft in the UAAP.
READ: La Salle beckons as Jacob Cortez bids San Beda goodbye
The month-long rumor mill shortly after Cortez & Co.'s NCAA title romp ended with the 21-year-old playmaker finding his way back to his champion dad Mike's collegiate stomping grounds where he won back-to-back UAAP crowns in 2000 and 2001.
Dubbed as the 'Cool Cub,' an ode to Mike's 'Cool Cat' moniker, Jacob's masterful last act with the Red Lions proved that he is more than just his father's basketball heir and is a true rising star in his own right.
Cortez dished out 15.4 points, 3.6 rebounds, 3.4 assists, and 1.2 steals per game in an unforgettable campaign — one that saw Philippine college basketball's winningest school convert a 12-6 (win-loss) prelims slate to a mighty 2-1 finals comeback for an unprecedented 23rd NCAA title.
Jacob's pursuit of growth
Citing the desire to tread uncharted waters and conquer new challenges ahead, the former La Salle Greenhills-turned-University of Sto. Tomas high school standout is primed and ready for the start of something new.
"Challenging, improving, and growing is always my goal, and so I have decided that to achieve this, I need to get out of my comfort zone. With that, I plan to compete in the UAAP," Cortez wrote on Thursday morning in his farewell note to San Beda.
Cortez, and possibly alongside another highly-touted guard in ex-National University ace Kean Baclaan, will soon be expected to serve a residency year before suiting up for the reigning UAAP champions come Season 88.
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