Beermen reunite with Cabagnot; Mercado back to Globalport
MANILA, Philippines — A night after clinching the top spot, San Miguel Beer reunited with its former guard Alex Cabagnot on Wednesday.
The Beermen welcomed back Cabagnot in a trade that sent guard Sol Mercado back to the Globalport Batang Pier. San Miguel Beer also gave up its 2018 and 2019 second round picks.
The surprising move, approved by Commissioner Chito Salud, just beat the league’s trade deadline.
Cabagnot is playing in his best season so far — averaging 15.3 points, 7.2 rebounds and 5.1 assists per game for the Batang Pier in the on-going 2015 PBA Philippine Cup.
Mercado meanwhile, has been playing a reduced role at the offensive end since being shipped to San Miguel Beer. Known for his scoring, Mercado is averaging just 6.2 points per game this conference with the Beermen loaded with scorers from big men June Mar Fajardo and Arwind Santos to wingmen Chris Lutz and Marcio Lassiter.
The 32-year-old Cabagnot spent four seasons with San Miguel Beer before being dealt to the Batang Pier last season.
Initially, the Beermen wanted their former guard Denok Miranda back in exchange for Mercado but Salud turned down the deal.
The 6-foot-1 Cabagnot won a championship with the Beermen duribg the 2011 Governors’ Cup.
Cabagnot had 18 points, four rebounds and five assists in 32 minutes in his final game for Globalport last Tuesday in an 82-70 loss to Meralco.
In his last stint for SMB, Mercado had one of his better games this conference with 15 points, four rebounds and five assists in just 16 minutes in a 91-62 whipping of winless Blackwater on Tuesday.
The Beermen gained an outright semifinals berth with their win over the Elite and they won’t see action in over a week — giving Cabagnot some time to familiarize himself with his new team.
The return of Mercado could see prized rookie Stanley Pringle facilitating more as both are expected to team up in the backcourt with another scorer Terrence Romeo coming off the bench.
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