In an era dominated by scoring guards, Rey Nambatac believes Titing Manalili stands out.
A prominent guard himself, Nambatac, also known by the nickname ‘Sting Rey’, said Manalili is a rare kind of player in today’s era of basketball for excelling as a traditional point guard who does much more than just score.
"Parang ngayon lang ata ako nakakita ng isang true point guard ulit sa generation na ‘to," Nambatac said.
"Kasi sa generation ko and sa modern basketball ngayon, bihira ka na makakita ng gano’ng kind of style of play ni Titing Manalili."
Nambatac has seen it all firsthand, literally.
Serving on Colegio de San Juan de Letran’s coaching staff beside head tactician Allen Ricardo, the TNT guard helps nurture talents like Manalili. From what he's seen, Nambatac believes the 21-year-old is already advanced for his age.
"Marami nagsasabi na rookie siya pero para sa akin, parang beterano na talaga e," Nambatac, who was part of the Letran champion team in 2015, added.
Nambatac’s praise for Manalili goes beyond scoring, highlighting his playmaking skills, which were on full display during his rookie campaign in NCAA Season 101, when he guided the Knights back to the finals after two years out of the Final Four.
The Cebuano backcourt general posted averages of 13.89 points throughout his first year donning the Letran colors, but also registered a league-best 9.0 assists on top of 4.74 rebounds, and 2.21 steals.
"‘Pag hinanapan mo siya ng passing ability, nando’n agad e. ‘Pag sinabi mo namang scoring ability, nando’n din e," Nambatac said.
"So para sa akin, napaka-rare ng ganon’ng klaseng player sa modern basketball ngayon. So sobrang saludo ako kay Titing, ang galing niyang player, ang galing niyang bata."
—JMB, GMA Integrated News
