Meralco rewards practice player Diego Dario with new PBA contract

MANILA, Philippines – Hard work pays off at the Meralco camp as the Bolts rewarded their practice player Diego Dario with a new PBA contract ahead of the 2023 Governors’ Cup, Dario confirmed on Tuesday, January 24.

Although terms of the new contract were not disclosed, the former UP standout’s new lease on PBA life comes after he put in the work as a Meralco practice player following his June 2021 release from Blackwater, the team that drafted him in 2018.

The 5-foot-7 guard is expected to provide a scoring and playmaking spark for a contending Meralco team that finished as runner-up to Ginebra in the last Governors’ Cup.

In his best run in the PBA back in the 2019 Philippine Cup, Dario averaged 3.4 points and 2.6 assists in around 12 minutes a game for Blackwater, playing alongside current Meralco players Allein Maliksi, Raymar Jose, and Mac Belo.

Dario will now provide backup for Meralco’s core perimeter rotation of Maliksi, Chris Newsome, Aaron Black, and Chris Banchero.

Meralco will resume action on Thursday, January 26, 6:45 pm, against NorthPort at the PhilSports Arena. The Bolts are coming off a 105-87 walloping of Rain or Shine in the conference’s kickoff double-header last Sunday, January 22, also at the same venue. – Rappler.com