With PBA Draft coming up, Matt Salem continues to fine tune game

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MACAU—Matt Salem knows reaching the PBA is the goal for any aspiring Filipino basketball player, and he’s doing everything ito equip himself with all the right tools that would be useful once he steps into the big league.

He’s already made a name for himself during his collegiate career as a marksman for National University and De La Salle, but he knows there’s still room to improve before submitting his name to the draft.

“I’m just working out for the last couple of months and I have to get ready for the draft pretty much,” said Salem Friday at Studio City here.

Salem is part of the Philippine representatives the iECO Green Warriors in the Asia League The Terrific 12 where they played against the top club teams from China, Japan, Chinese-Taipei, and Korea.

Although iECO went winless in Group C and failing to enter the semifinals after two games, Salem was a solid contributor for the team and was able to display his deft stroke from outside.

Salem averaged 12.5 points and three triples per game for the Green Warriors, who was formed just weeks before the competition started on Tuesday.

“It’s a good experience, it’s an international tournament and it shows that I can work that I can eventually use in the PBA,” said Salem. “It’s going to take a lot of time to be able to work on those skills I need to develop.”

“Offensive-wise, I got my shooting, I can attack when I want on and off the ball screen. I think I could develop a few more skills after seeing these international players.”