Jordan Heading —PDI FILES
Converge has acquired the rights to sweet-shooting guard and former Gilas Pilipinas mainstay Jordan Heading on Tuesday, following a trade with perennial league doormat Terrafirma.
The move sent Aljun Melecio, Keith Zaldivar and the FiberXer’s first-round pick in Season 51 to the Dyip, interim coach Franco Atienza told the Inquirer shortly before the team made the swap official.
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“We’re excited to build a relationship with Jordan. We know what he’s capable of. He’s a fixture with the national team, highly skilled and a good guy. He will be a big addition to our family,” Atienza said of the Fil-Aussie, but not without thanking Melecio and Zaldivar for their service.
“The challenge now is to have him up to speed [on] what we’d like to do, considering that the (Commissioner’s) Cup is starting in three weeks.”
In Heading, the young telco club assembles a talented core that features Alec Stockton, Schonny Winston and former Rookie of the Year Justin Arana. Also on his way to join Converge is Justine Baltazar, the top pick of this year’s rookie class.
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Japan, Australia stints
That talent, along with their sensational playoff run in the Governors’ Cup, should bode well for the franchise that has earned a lot of admirers following a gallant fight that dragged San Miguel to a deciding Game 5 in that tournament’s quarterfinals.
Picked first overall in a special round of the 2021 Rookie Draft, Heading instead opted to ply his trade in Taiwan before moving to Japan and later Australia.
He continued to serve the National Five that stretch, before finding his way to the Strong Group Athletics squad coached by Charles Tiu, a member of the Converge brain trust.
“We now have a guy who can score—another great shooter and playmaker,” the young mentor, who concurrently coaches St. Benilde, told the Inquirer in a separate chat.
“He’s a guy with a lot of experience. But most importantly, he’s a winner,” he added.
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