Blackwater coach Pat Aquino dismisses Barefield, David trade rumors
At A Glance
- Barefield and David were among the biggest names linked to offseason trade rumors but the Bossing ended up keeping both players and opted to see how the team fares in the season-ending Governors' Cup.
Blackwater head coach Pat Aquino dismissed offseason trade rumors involving Sedrick Barefield and Christian David, saying both stars will remain with the team, at least through the end of the season.
Barefield and David were among the biggest names linked to offseason trade rumors but the Bossing ended up keeping both players and opted to see how the team fares in the season-ending Governors’ Cup.
Barefield’s contract with Blackwater already expired last July 15, but was automatically extended until the end of the season. David, meanwhile, has been drawing interest from several teams.
“I think that's all rumors again,” said Aquino after Blackwater’s shocking 131-108 rout of the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters in its opening game.
“I think management has backed me up so much. We wanted to prove as a team. Forget about the rumors. Just play the game right now. What we have right now is what we have for the rest of the season,” he added.
Although David sat out with a knee injury, the game was still an encouraging sign for Blackwater, which avenged its 56-point loss to Rain or Shine after absorbing a 151-95 beating last conference.
At the forefront of that offensive display for the Bossing was Barefield, who poured 24 points and provided ample support to import Kentrell Barkley, who put up a rousing debut of 29 points, 15 rebounds and 10 assists.
Such performance, even with the trade rumors swirling during the offseason, just proved that the Bossing are focused on improving during the break.
“I think we had a great offseason. We talked about how we would get back to this conference,” said Aquino.
“I think everybody has the motivation coming into this conference. With KB around, he's a great help for us being a great leader out there. We hope that we just continue working harder and we improve more in the coming games,” he added.