By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
Since the arrival of the decorated coach Aldin Ayo, the Converge FiberXers became one of the busiest teams striking trade proposals with other franchises.
After landing his former DLSU point guard Aljun Melecio whom he shared the 2016 UAAP men’s basketball title, coach Ayo is on the verge of reuniting with his former NCAA ward Jerrick Balanza.
Balanza, Ayo’s star small forward when the Letran Knights won the 2015 NCAA title, was recently involved in a trade package between Converge and the NorthPort Batang Pier.
According to the trade proposal, Converge will be shipping Allyn Bulanadi and Tyrus Hill in exchange for Balanza and veteran swingman Kevin Ferrer.
Trade clauses and specific details are yet to be announced by both teams including possible counter-offers if ever one franchise isn’t contented with the initial plan.
Both teams are also yet to pass a finalized trade proposal to the office of the PBA commissioner Willie Marcial to formalize the deal between Converge and NorthPort.
Ayo immediately let his presence known during his first game as a professional coach and led the FiberXers to a convincing 124-110 win over the Terrafirma Dyip.
The legendary collegiate coach was true to his promise of bringing the exciting ‘mayhem’ basketball philosophy to the PBA.
From a slow-paced half-court oriented squad, Ayo turned the FiberXers into a run-and-gun team that capitalized on every turnover which was evident during their win against Terrafirma.
If the Balanza trade will be successful, Ayo will now have three members of his 2015-2016 collegiate championship squad.
