With UAAP career done, Ateneo's Lao shifts focus to Converge FiberXers exec role
MANILA, Philippines — After a storybook ending in his collegiate career for Ateneo, Jacob Lao is ready to open another chapter in his budding career as the youngest basketball executive in the country.
Lao, only 22 years old, is set for debut as the assistant team manager of new PBA franchise Converge in the 2023 Governors' Cup after a sweet championship with the Blue Eagles in the just-concluded UAAP Season 85.
And this early, the youthful and amiable executive can't wait to hit his first day in the office when the calendar flips to another page.
"I'll start in January. Syempre, I still have to finish my school but I only have a subject left so nothing much to do. I'm gonna be ready and focused on that. I'm excited for 2023 and what's in store for Converge," said Lao, who's bound to finish BS Restaurant Entrepreneurship in Ateneo.
Lao led a group of Blue Eagles called "The Buffaloes", who sacrificed and simulated the plays of Ateneo's opponents that served as the key in their thrilling winner-take-all finals win against rival University of the Philippines.
The group was lauded by Ateneo coach Tab Baldwin and the rest of their teammates for their commitment and discipline, which Lao is expected to carry over to the PBA given Ateneo's holistic program on and off the court.
In the PBA and Converge for his managerial role debut, Lao will be working hand-in-hand with Pampanga Gov. Dennis "Delta" Pineda, who has been appointed as the FiberXers team manager.
Lao is a son of business tycoon Frank Lao who owns Gloria Maris and Choi Garden restaurants, and a close friend of Converge owner Dennis Anthony Uy, making him a fit and promising personality in a managerial role with his involvement in the handling their company.
Albeit it will be a new battlefield on the court, Lao is up for the tall order given the guidance of his father, who built the bridge in his UAAP to PBA transition on a different capacity.
"It's very pressuring. Until now, when I see it, when I look at things, pressure for me pero sabi nga nila, pressure is privilege for other people. I'm blessed to be in this position and to have that title, pero dahil 'yun sa tatay ko talaga. I just want to grow, learn and try to do a good job talaga for Converge," he beamed.
"I think the reason why my dad put me there was ideas, I know yung mga players na papasok galing college. Converge is a new team. With coach Aldin Ayo, we want new guys, fresh young kids. We want to bring great kind of basketball talaga. We have a long term plan for a lot of kids na sina-scout na namin now."
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