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NorthPort Batang Pier head coach Pido Jarencio explained Friday that it was difficult to pass up the opportunity to sign Greg Slaughter, whom the team acquired in exchange for Christian Standhardinger.
In an interview with Lyn Olavario of News5, the coach mentioned that the Batang pier was weighing its options after making the fil-German forward available for a trade.
He also added that before the trade, Standhardinger and team management were unable to reach an agreement on his contract.
“We do not want to lose the opportunity to get a two-meter player. It is difficult to get a two-meter player who knows how to play. Christian, he is a good player. He is not a bad player,” Jarencio said in Filipino. .
“However, Greg can meet our needs. He could change our inner presence, rebound, intimidation on the inside, and we could turn to him. [for offense]”he added.
The former sniper mentioned a case where Prince Ibeh was patrolling the Batang Pier painting at the 2019 Commissioner’s Cup.
Ibeh, a 6’10 center, only averaged 13.7 points, but grabbed 15.9 rebounds and made 4.0 shots per game. NorthPort finished as the second seed after eliminations, but was ousted by San Miguel in the quarterfinals.
Jarencio also brought down those who were pestering, saying the trade was uneven since Slaughter took a year-long hiatus, in contrast to Standhardinger, whose display gave him eye-catching statistics inside the bubble.
“According to his Instagram, Greg was working on his conditioning. He went to the United States for individual training. When he came back, he probably thought he couldn’t be indifferent and work for himself. So he decided to come back, to improve himself.” Jarencio remarked.
With the center now the focal point of the offense, Jarencio says he will play Slaughter for a “minimum of 30 to 35” minutes.
NorthPort heads to the upcoming 2021 Philippine Cup with a clean slate, as Robert Bolick and Sean Anthony have now recovered from their respective injuries.
While Jarencio is elated that the team is now injury free, he is now seeing another concern that could affect the Batang pier. Newly acquired players aside, the team will select second place in the upcoming PBA Rookie Draft, one of the deepest in years.
“My concern now is the camaraderie, the bond. Because we also have a lot of new players. They have to adapt again with the other players. So you have like two or three weeks to train them. Even with other teams, it takes years for full chemistry.” .
