Two imports and a replacement.
That’s how serious Meralco is in its buildup, not just for the Philippine Basketball Association, but also for the Season 2 of the East Asian Super League.
The Bolts have already secured two imports, but they are still looking at bringing in another reinforcement, preferably a guard, to boost their firepower both in the PBA and the EASL.
In the EASL, teams can submit a roster that includes two imports. They, however, are allowed to change reinforcements after their first game.
Meralco’s first game in the EASL will be on 15 November against Japan B. League champion Ryukyu Golden Kings, who are bannered by familiar faces in Allen Durham and Carl Tamayo.
But other than Durham and Tamayo, the Golden Kings also have a big import in 6-foot-11 Alex Kirk, who is coming in as a two-time B. League champion.
Kirk played five games for the Cleveland Cavaliers in the National Basketball Association and led Japanese side Alvark Tokyo to the 2019 FIBA Asia Champions Cup crown.
But after their match, the Bolts will be stacked against Taiwanese squad New Taipei Kings.
The Kings are a guard-oriented squad and Trillo is looking to match up with them by bringing in a smaller import who could push the pace and switch the tempo a notch higher.
After all, Meralco can afford to bring in a guard to help its bigger reinforcement as well as 6-foot-9 rookie Brandon Bates and veterans Raymond Almazan and Kyle Pascual.
The Bolts also have a hard working forward in Cliff Hodge, who is expected to share both forward spots with the imports.
Meralco truly wants to take it to a higher level.
In the PBA, the Bolts are still in search of their first title and they came close to winning it four times only to falter in the best-of-seven finals.
They want to win at all cost and bringing in the right import to match up with elite reinforcements like Rondae Hollis-Jefferson and Justin Brownlee will be the key to winning the crown.
As for the EASL, the ploy of having a standby reinforcement as replacement could give the Bolts some flexibility and could put them in a better position of matching up with the powerhouse teams in the region.
It’s a strategy that could lead to a title.
