PINEDA SAYS NO STOCKTON TRADE, REVEALS DAVE ILDEFONSO TIMELINE

CONVERGE coach Dennis 'Delta' Pineda has shut down talks of any trade for Alec Stockton as the independent PBA team moves on from the heartbreaking loss to Barangay Ginebra in the Philippine Cup quarterfinal playoffs.

Speaking in Snow Badua's No Cooking Show podcast on Monday night, Pineda brushed off reports of an imminent trade that swirled after Stockton fouled Jeremiah Gray while he was taking a hurried three-point shot late in their do-or-die quarterfinal. 

Gray's three free throws set the stage for overtime, which saw Ginebra pull off a 99-98 win that sent the twice-to-beat FiberXers packing.

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"Walang trade," Pineda, concurrently the vice-governor of Pampanga, said as he complained that the trade rumors are hurting the players' morale and team chemistry as the FiberXers prepare for the midseason Commissioner's Cup.

"Naapektuhan ang mga players at naapektuhan ang samahan [ng team]," Pineda added.

Pineda said he was proud of Converge's showing in the Philippine Cup, where the youth-laden team finished as the fourth seed with a 7-4 (win-loss) record and came one defensive stop away from a maiden semifinal appearance.

Proud of Converge fight

More than anything, the rookie PBA coach said he was glad to see the fight shown by his youthful team.

"Nakita ko ang attitude ng team, wala pong sumuko," said Pineda. "'Di n'yo nakita na nag-give up ang team, determinado na manalo. Mga bagito, pero nakapag-bigay po kami ng saya. Maganda ang Game Two (vs Ginebra)."

The Converge coach said his first playoff duel against multi-titled Tim Cone of Ginebra was a learning experience.

"Malaking karangalan [at] maraming natutunan," he said.

Moving forward, Pineda revealed an arrangement where Dave Ildefonso will play out the remainder of his contract with MPBL champions Abra Solid North Weavers before any talks of joining the FiberXers in the PBA.

Converge acquired Ildefonso's PBA signing rights from Titan in exchange for Kobe Monje and future first-round and second-round draft picks. 

Since Converge has traded away its Season 51 first-round pick to Terrafirma in the Jordan Heading deal and the Season 52 draft pick in the Ildefonso transaction, he expects the latter to be the fresh boost that the team will need in the future.

"I need to respect 'yung kontrata n'ya [with Abra]," said Pineda, expecting Ildefonso to be available to sign a new contract by the end of the next MPBL season in December.  

2026-01-13T10:15:08Z