Northport showed fangs in the 2023 PBA Draft.
I knew it!
As I said in my previous blog, there is no way in hell that Fran Yu would be in that spot not unless there is an agreement in which all eleven teams would snub him.
If you look at my mock draft, I had Fran Yu at number 11. My reason here is simple - Northport's new coach is Bonnie Tan. The multi-titled Letran coach is also responsible for getting Yu in the PBA On Tour alongside Tommy Olivario. During the "tryout," Fran was logging heavy minutes wherein he built rapport with emerging Northport star JM Calma.
Aside from Mr. Frantastic's obvious talents, he is also an ideal player to teach Bonnie Tan's system.
You don't offer a two-year deal to a fourth-round pick not unless he's there for a reason. And like I said, he's a great gamble that paid off. Northport and Terrafirma are teams affiliated with SMC as far as players and coaches are concerned and I believe they did well in this year's draft.
With Northport taking Yu at number 40, they were able to acquire Zavier Lucero and Cade Flores in the first round as well as Bonnie Tan's other Letran player Brent Paraiso. In some ways, Northport also lucked out when they got John Amores in the fifth round.
These players were all signed by Northport.
While I don't think they will have the talent to uninstall the SMC teams and TNT from their respective spots, getting five PBA-ready players is a step in the right direction.
With that said, hopefully, these players stick with the team and not go elsewhere once their farming period is over.