Young Filipino recruits Rhenz Abando, Rhon Jay Abarrientos and SJ Belangel are set to make their debuts as professionals when the regular season of the Korean Basketball League starts on Saturday.
Abando, considered as the highest-paid import in the league, plunges into action when his Anyang KGC Ginseng Corporation team meets the Seoul Knights.
Abarrientos, who is getting great reviews after his 14.5 points and 6.0 assists in four games played during the pre-season, will show what he is made of when his squad, Ulsan Hyundai Mobis Phoebis, meets Suwon KT Sonicboom.
Belangel’s Daegu Kogas Pegasus will fight it out with KCC Egis on Sunday.
All three skipped their final year with their respective varsity teams in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines and also the Philippine Basketball Association Rookie Draft this year to turn pro in Korea.
Belangel played for the Ateneo Blue Eagles in college and in high school, while Abarrientos was plucked from the Far Eastern University Tamaraws.
Abando, who was with the Letran Knights, was last season’s MVP in the National Collegiate Athletic Association.
Among them, Abando has the biggest paycheck after signing up for 237 million won, or P13.89 million for his first season.
Abarrientos, according to reports in Korea, answers the Ulsan’s need for a reliable point guard, believing that his ability to score when necessary will help lift the team to the finals.
Ulsan Hyundai Mobis recently placed runner-up in the 2022 MG Saemaeul Geumgo KBL Cup held in Tongyeong, Gyeongsangnam-do, with Abarrientos playing in many games.
All were recruited through the Asian quota system, which gives them a two-year contract.
But because team management was impressed with Abarrientos during his stint in the UAAP, he was given a three-year deal. Peter Atencio