INQUIRER Sports

MANILA, Philippines – Notwithstanding the lack of big men this coming season, the De La Salle Green Archers are hoping to apply individual skills learned from someone who trained one of the greatest NBA players.

The Archers trained under Tim Grover, a former personal trainer of NBA legend Michael Jordan, for two weeks in Chicago.

“It was really tiring. We practiced twice a day, a total of six hours, everyday,” said rookie point guard Joe Tolentino, who was recruited from Reedley International School.

Grover taught them individual skills including movements in the court, shooting form, and decision-making in certain situations, added rookie forward Martin John Reyes, a graduate of La Salle Greenhills.

In Grover, the Archers had a taste of collegiate mentoring in the US. “Iba ung coaching nila dun. Tutok na tutok (Coaching there is different and very focused on players),” noted power forward Jojo Mendoza.

Rookie forward Gabriel Banal, meanwhile, said their bonding as a team heightened while training in the US.

Team official Dendu Anareta said about six rookies and nine veterans would be playing this coming season although the official line-up is yet to be released.

Forward James Mangahas expects this coming season to be a tough one for the Archers, who lost to rival Ateneo in the finals last season.

“We’re not as strong because we lost JV (Casio) and Rico (Maierhofer),” he said. Maierhofer is joining the PBA draft this August. As one of the more veteran players, Mangahas said he will need to guide his teammates.

“We're not as strong because we lost JV (Casio) and Rico (Maierhofer),” he said. Maierhofer is joining the PBA draft this August. As one of the more veteran players, Mangahas said he will need to guide his teammates.