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The loss of the UNIVERSITY of Santo Tomás is the gain of Letran.
Rhenz Abando, Brent Paraiso and Ira Bataller have officially engaged the Knights in the aftermath of the Growling Tigers’ controversial Bicol bubble training.
Spin.ph Sources confirmed that the trio, who left Spain last week, decided to go to another Dominican school in Muralla.
The three sealed the transfer over the weekend by starting a new chapter with Letran’s coach, Bonnie Tan.
Abando, a 6-foot-2-inch flier, is easily the most sought-after of the three, as he was the UST’s second-leading scorer last season, scoring 11.7 points on 29 percent shooting from the center, plus 5.3. rebounds and 1.3 blocks in the Growling Tigers’ run toward the UAAP season 82 finals.
This will be the 22-year-old’s third school after preparing for UST and the Philippine College of Science and Technology in Calasiao, Pangasinan.
Last year, he found himself in the middle of a poaching controversy when at least two rival UAAP schools unsuccessfully alienated him from the Growling Tigers.
Meanwhile, Paraíso, 22, is a 6-foot-2 point guard who averaged 7.2 points with a 32 percent clip from deep, along with 4.0 rebounds and 1.4 assists last season.
He previously saw action for La Salle in his first two seasons, winning a championship with the Green Archers in UAAP’s 79th season in 2016.
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Bataller is a 6-foot-4 striker who started 14 of 18 UST games last season, where the 21-year-old had 1.9 points, 2.9 rebounds and 1.1 assists.
Abando and Bataller can still play for three seasons in Letran, while Paraíso has two more years of play.
The NCAA does not count years of residence as part of the student-athlete’s five seasons of play.
His arrival boosts Letran’s offseason after earning previous engagements from Chiang Kai Shek’s Rafael Go, Perpetual’s Yuki Kawamura, and National University-Nazareth School’s Jeff Mailim and Jimly Lantaya.
Truth be told, the trio can also play in the Knights’ title retention offer in the 96th NCAA season if the season is delayed after May 2021 and they study at Letran for at least two semesters.
It means Abando, Paraiso and Bataller may have the opportunity to team up with seniors Larry Muyang, Jeo Ambohot and Ato Ular next season, as well as last year’s Finals MVP Fran Yu.
