Bates upbeat on Meralco PBA title repeat

MANILA, Philippines -- Following a maiden PBA championship in the Philippine Cup, Meralco center Brandon Bates said he believes the Bolts could go all away once again.

Especially with the returning Allen Durham steering the ship.

PBA Season 49 tips off on Sunday with the curtain-raising Governors’ Cup. The Bolts will kick off the new season with a battle against the Magnolia Hotshots at 7:30 p.m.

The 6-foot-9 Bates, who was one of the key players for Meralco’s PBA Philippine Cup crown last season, said he is confident of the team’s capability to win another title this time around.

“We do have a very, very good import [in Durham]. Plus he’s a really, really nice guy. So, I’m very confident,” he told Philstar.com in an interview on the sidelines of the vivo 3x3 basketball challenge on Saturday.

“We have the same team and we just added probably one of the best imports the league has ever seen, so we’re very excited and very confident in our chances,” he added.

After a few seasons playing overseas, Durham returned to the Bolts for this season.

He earlier won three Best Import of the Conference awards but was not able to push the squad over the hump.

But with Meralco's championship core intact and with the addition of rookie CJ Cansino, Bates said he thinks the team has got what it takes to grab the elusive import-laden title.

And with how his team is constructed, the big man stressed that they will be gunning for the championship in all three conferences this season.

“[Championships in] all three [conferences,] of course. We’re gonna go for a grand slam.”