Calvin Oftana believes he’ll be able to adopt quickly to the system of coach Yeng Guiao as he prepares for his maiden PBA campaign with the NLEX Road Warriors.
The No. 3 pick in the recent PBA Rookie Draft feels that his experiences with the likes of Tab Baldwin, Jong Uichico and Boyet Fernandez will help a great deal now he’s set to get some pointers from Guiao.
“Hindi naman siguro mahirap mag-adjust kasi I’ve been with so many good coaches like sina Coach Boyet, Coach Tab and Coach Jong (I don’t think I’ll have a hard time adjusting since I’ve been with so many good coaches like Coach Boyet, Coach Tab and Coach Jong),” said Oftana in a recent interview with One Sports’ The Game.
Oftana was under Fernandez throughout his NCAA stint with San Beda highlighted by three championships and a Season 95 Most Valuable Player award in 2019.
The versatile forward got a bigger break late last year when he was part of the Gilas Pilipinas squad for the second window of the FIBA Asia Cup Qualifiers in Bahrain.
Coached by Uichico and Baldwin serving as Gilas program director, Oftana had nine points, four rebounds and four assists in 15 minutes as the national cagers routed Thailand, 93-69, to complete a two-game sweep of their Southeast Asian neighbor inside the Manama bubble.
Oftana would have suited up for Gilas anew in the third window of the continental qualifiers, even spending more than a month training with the team at the Inspire Sports Academy in Calamba, Laguna.
But the final phase of the qualifiers was postponed to June after Doha cancelled its right to host the window and Clark, Pampanga agreeing to stage the games in June.
Now he’s focus on trying to provide an immediate lift for the Road Warriors, who got an all-around forward who seems fit for how Guiao runs things.