In May 2023, the Meralco Bolts acquired big man Norberto Torres from Rain or Shine (ROS) in Luigi Trillo’s first move since assuming head coaching chores.
Coach Trillo, who got his appointment on the first week of May, let go of forward Mac Belo to get the rights to Torres. The 6-foot-6 slotman from La Salle was expected to beef up the Bolts’ frontline led by Raymond Almazan and Cliff Hodge.
Meanwhile, Belo joins an ROS side on a rebuilding phase under coach Yeng Guiao, hoping to find his mark after riding the bench for most of his two-year stint with Meralco.
The trade paid off for the Bolts as the Fil-Canadian bruiser soon became a regular fixture in the Bolts frontline with the retirement of Reynel Hugnatan. Hugnatan would later become one of the assistant coaches for the team.
With Torres, the Bolts paraded a gigantic line-up with Almazan, Hodge, Brandon Bates, Jake Pascual and Toto Jose. The formidable wall allowed to Bolts to become competitive against powerhouse Barangay Ginebra and San Miguel Beermen to captre their first ever PBA championship, the 2024 All-Filipino crown.
With Bates and Almazan were injured and cannot play last March 2024 against Rain or Shine Elastopainters, Torres nearly posted double-double numbers with his 16 points and nine rebounds. He also contributed a block in 26 minutes and 33 seconds of play for the Meralco's overtime win.
His efforts did not go unnoticed.
"Norbert is such a professional. He's ready to play his role. He cheers for his teammates," said Trillo.
On the other hand, Belo was let go by the Elasto Painters at the end of Season 48 after his one-year deal expired.
Belo, 31, has been in basketball for such a long time he understands how its business side works and operates.
"Part naman ng pagiging professional yun, so ganun talaga. Kailangan mo lang mag-move on," said the former Far Eastern University standout when he joined new team Zamboanga Valientes last August 2024.
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