MPBL Finals hero Mark Yee was included in the six-man pool of Manila Chooks TM for the FIBA 3x3 Lipik Challenger slated May 21 and 22 in Croatia.
Yee, who led Davao Occidental to the MPBL Lakan crown last March, has been training with the rest of the team in Lucena City since Thursday, May 13 in preparation for the qualifying draw of the FIBA 3x3 level 10-tournament.
“Mark Yee is a good addition to our pool since he stretches the floor and has been known to be a good defender in the post,” said Manila head trainer Aldin Ayo.
The 39-year-old Yee’s three late in Game 4 of the MPBL Finals inside the Subic bubble helped Davao Occidental clinch the title with a 3-1 series victory over San Juan.
He was later named Finals Most Valuable Player after averaging 13.5 points, 10.25 rebounds, 2.75 assists, 1.5 steals, and 1.0 blocks.
Also part of the Manila pool are Chico Lanete, Mac Tallo, Dennis Santos and Zach Huang, who split their two matches in the qualifying draw of the Doha Masters in mid-March.
Manila secured the approval of the Lucena City government to hold its training at the Quezon Convention Center for seven days before heading to Lipik, a northeastern Croatian town located 120 km from the capital of Zagreb.
Also part of the Lucena bubble are practice player Jom Sollano, coaches McJour Luib and Marvin Pangilinan and staff member Mark Ordonez.
Manila Chooks, which is waiting for travel visas to be approved by the Croatian embassy in Jakarta, is joined in the qualifying draw by Croatia’s Split, Puerto Rico’s San Juan, Germany’s Bielefeld TSVE and Dusseldorf LFDY and the winner of the Quest tournament in Russia.