By REYNALD MAGALLON
Expect an entertaining and exciting brand of basketball from Converge under its new leadership.
Known for his organized chaos brand of play called the ‘mayhem’ which marked his rise in the collegiate ranks, newly minted FiberXers head coach Aldin Ayo is looking to bring in the same feisty and competitive mentality to the PBA.
While not too keen on using the ‘mayhem’ in the big league, Ayo assured that his players will play with the same energy and tenacity on both ends of the floor in order to be competitive against other established PBA teams.
“I think it will be the same pero kung may changes man siguro mas magiging exciting because this is a different level and we have talented players and these players really fit our system,” said Ayo during the Converge’s media catch up video press conference on Tuesday, Sept. 13.
“I think it will be new sa PBA kung paano kami maglalaro. It will be exciting and entertaining both on offense and defense. Siguro yung one thing na maappreciate ng fans dito yung passion na ipapakita ng mga players during the game, mga coaches and team officials so the team as a whole, we’re going to compete and I think it will be very entertaining for the fans,” he added.
And the NCAA and UAAP champion coach is dead serious in making an immediate impact right on his first conference with the FiberXers.
Ayo will be banking on familiarity with his players in his rookie year as a PBA coach as his crew will be led by his former players in the likes of Jeron Teng, Abu Tratter, Kevin Racal and recently acquired Aljun Melecio – all of them played and won a title under his tutelage in the collegiate ranks.
The controversial coach also has the full confidence of the Converge management which believes Ayo is exactly what the doctor has ordered for the team to be competitive in its second conference in the league.
“Aldin is a good fit for Converge, always hungry, pushing borders and testing limits and that’s how our company is. It’s no knock on the performance of Jeff Cariaso but we just needed somebody who can hone these guys, push them to the limit and be more competitive,” said team governor Chito Salud who also tapped the services of a former NBA talent in Quincy Miller for the mid-season conference.
Ayo, however, is tempering expectations in his first tour of duty, knowing full well it will be hard for an independent team like Converge to go deep in the tournament which has been long dominated by teams under the SMC group or MVP umbrella.
“We have to take care of the things that we can control and that is establishing the system and making these young players (become) the best players they can be. I think we have the materials because these players are young, athletic and high character,” said Ayo
“We always want to push ourselves to the limit. We are going to do our best and hopefully our best will be enough for us to win and let’s see kung hanggang saan aabot.”
