GLOBALPORT got a major facelift after the Draft and the Batang Pier are looking at doing a first in their young PBA existence—and that is to make the Final Four in any of the coming three conferences.
With Stanley Pringle touted as the next big thing among point guards, the Batang Pier have high hopes starting next week when the 40th PBA season opens, convinced that they are done with birth pains after taking their share of losses in their first two years in the league.
“Our target is to land in the semifinals for the first time this year, and we have three conferences to do it,” said team owner Mikee Romero, who graced a Philippine Sportswriters Association Forum at Shakey’s Malate recently together with his Batang Pier.
“We were always in the bottom (in our first two years) and I am not used to that,” Romero added. “It was a humbling experience for us, but this year, hopefully, we have found the type of team that we are looking for.”
GLOBALPORT owner Mikee Romero (left) has high hopes for rookie Stanley Pringle (middle). NIÑO JESUS ORBETA
Unlike last season when the Batang Pier seemed like a team loaded on all fronts, Globalport seems to be guard-heavy with Pringle joining the veteran Alex Cabagnot and sophomore gunslinger Terrence Romeo at the backcourt.
Romero fondly calls them his “three-headed monster,” which he hopes to ride all the way to a first-ever semifinal stint.
Pringle has been very impressive in the pre-season, with coach Pido Jarencio describing him as very down to earth and coachable.
The 6-foot-1 top overall rookie pick and the Batang Pier first plunge into action on Tuesday when they battle NLEX at Smart Araneta Coliseum. They won just a combined two games in Jarencio’s first two conference calling the shots.
Cabagnot, though, believes that the time is right for the Batang Pier to finally break out.
“We are happy with the results (of our pre-season), but we cannot be contented,” Cabagnot said. “But the signs are good.”
The Batang Pier wound out their strenuous buildup for the season which included a hectic schedule in Seoul in South Korea where they battled collegiate squads and teams from the professional Korean Basketballl League (KBL).