MANILA – Veteran forward Vic Manuel ended his stint with the Alaska Aces after being sent to Phoenix Super LPG Fuel Masters in a two-team, two player trade on Tuesday.
Based on the approved deal by the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) trade committee, Manuel is headed to Fuel Masters with Aces’ first round and second round picks in the 2021 PBA Rookie Draft.
In exchange, Aces will receive veteran guard Brian Heruela from Fuel Masters along with Phoenix’s first round and second round picks in the upcoming draft and another first round pick in next year’s draft.
The approved trade finally put an end to what seems to be a challenging period between Nueva Ecija-native Manuel and the Aces, which acquired him from defunct Air21 Express back in 2014.
Aces head coach Jeffrey Cariaso was relieved to finally trade away Manuel, who requested to be shipped out from the Aces last month following disagreement on his contract extension. He inked a one-year deal prior to the trade.
“Trading Vic was very challenging these past six weeks. There were several offers from different teams that either fell off the table or we simply did not want to accept,” Cariaso said.
“Finally, we’ve come to a deal with Phoenix that will give us a better opportunity to draft marquee talents in both rounds. Plus give us an extra first round pick next year,” he added.
Fuel Masters team manager Paolo Bugia, for his part, said acquiring Manuel was huge for Phoenix heading into the upcoming PBA season after recently losing Calvin Abueva to Magnolia Hotshots.
“We just want to be competitive and be a contender,” said Bugia in an interview with Spin.ph.
The arrival of Manuel will further fortify the Fuel Masters bannered by Bacolodnon Justin Chua and Jason Perkins, who both played a key role in Phoenix’s semifinals finish in the 2020 PBA Philippine Cup.
Heruela, who is expected to be signed to a new deal by Alaska, will also bolster the Aces’ backcourt and join fellow veterans Jvee Casio, Maverick Ahanmisi, and Michael Digregorio./PN
