BY JONAS TERRADO
SOL Mercado is on the move again after Phoenix Pulse acquired the veteran guard from NorthPort in two-for-one trade approved by the PBA Commissioner’s Office on Monday.
Mercado was shipped by the Batang Pier in exchange for point guard LA Revilla and wingman Rey Guevarra in a move that gives the Fuel Masters additional depth and experience.
The 35-year-old switch teams seven months after he was traded by Barangay Ginebra San Miguel to NorthPort as part of the Stanley Pringle deal.
It will be Mercado’s seventh team in a career that started in 2008 with Rain or Shine. He also suited up for Meralco, San Miguel Beer and Ginebra where he won three championships.
Mercado also had three stints with the Batang Pier, first from 2013 to 2014, a one-game stint late in 2014 and another in the last two conferences of the just-concluded season.
He played 51 games for Ginebra and NorthPort with averages of 5.6 points, 2.9 rebounds and 3.2 assists in the Philippine Cup, 6.7 points in the Commissioner’s Cup and 4.4 points, 1.6 rebounds and 1.0 assists in the Governors’ Cup.
Mercado’s season, however, ended when he sprained his ankle during NorthPort’s Governors’ Cup semifinal series loss to Ginebra.
Phoenix is banking on Mercado to fit well with coach Louie Alas’ defensive schemes and improve last season’s seesaw campaign.
The Fuel Masters made the semifinals for the first time during the Philippine Cup but the suspension handed to star forward Calvin Abueva resulted in playoff absences in the Commissioner’s Cup and Governors’ Cup.
Revilla, who leaves Phoenix after two seasons, hopes to have a fresh start with the Batang Pier where he’ll fight for minutes with Nico Elorde, Paolo Taha, Jerramy King and the injured Robert Bolick, his teammate during La Salle’s 2013 UAAP title run.
