MANILA, Philippines - After dominating the previous three conferences of the PBA Developmental League, NLEX coach Boyet Fernandez claims this season will be a test of character for his newly assembled Road Warriors after nine of his players were selected in the recent PBA Rookie Draft.
Fernandez made up for his manpower loss by signing up 6-11 center Greg Slaughter and forward Nico Salva – both from Ateneo.
NLEX also netted Adamson forward Eric Camson and another off guard from Ateneo, Oping Sumalinog, hoping they will help boost the team’s campaign this season.
“It will be tough for the new recruits. They have big shoes to fill,” said Fernandez, adding the team will still be defense-oriented.
“Many teams have beef up their rosters and the new age requirement provides more opportunities to players in terms of livelihood and likewise makes games more exciting,” Fernandez said.
Effective this season, the league is allowing teams to enlist players who are over the age limit of 26 but not over 28 provided they are PBA veteran or rookie free agents.
While admitting the loss of key players, Fernandez remains confident that the Road Warriors will remain as competitive.
And it could be welcome news for Fernandez that four of the nine NLEX players who joined the draft, namely Woody Co, Jaypee Belencion, Eric Suguitan and Karl Dehesa, have remained unsigned as of Thursday and may opt to return to the team.
“We want to be as competitive as the previous conferences. So I’m sure management will be happy to have them back,” Fernandez said.