Letran officially welcomes Abando, Paraiso, Bataller to Knights’ lair

After weeks of drama with the UST Growling Tigers, the trio of Rhenz Abando, Brent Paraiso, and Ira Bataller can now officially settle into their new home with the reigning NCAA champion Letran Knights.

Head coach Bonnie Tan was understandably ecstatic with the 3 stalwarts who fell into his lap following UST’s “Bicol bubble” controversy.

“Their addition is certainly a huge boost to our program as they also bring their experiences to our championship core,” he said. “Our team management, staff, and I have also done our homework on how we can easily integrate them into our team.”

Tan and the school’s special assistant to the rector for sports development Alfrancis Chua made it a point to make their new recruits feel right at home, especially after an unceremonious exit from their previous squad.

“Being Thomasians, coach Alfrancis Chua and I did not turn a blind eye when these 3 young players were knocking and asking if Letran could be their new home. After all, Letran and UST are sister schools,” Tan said.

If NCAA Season 96, which will be hosted by Letran during their quadricentennial year, pushes through in the first quarter of 2021, then the former Tiger trio will have to sit out for residency until 2022.

However, if the new season is pushed back until September 2021, then they will be ready to immediately suit up for the team since the NCAA only requires two sit-out semesters instead of a full year like the UAAP.

If that happens, Abando, Paraiso, and Bataller would get one season to play with the Knights’ next graduating cast of Larry Muyang, Jeo Ambohot, and Christian Fajarito, essentially turning the defending champions into an arguably better team than last year.

But regardless of what happens with their residency, the trio will still get at least one year playing alongside Season 95 Finals MVP Fran Yu, who has two years left of eligibility starting next year.

Whether they get to play immediately or not, Tan’s new wards all but guarantee that Letran will stay as one of the league’s most elite teams for at least the next two years.

“We definitely can’t wait to work with them once we can return to the gym,” Tan said. “But for now, we will guide them to becoming true Letranistas. Arriba!” – Rappler.com