Blackwater set to send Mike Tolomia to Alaska, to acquire Jvee Casio, Barkley Eboña as rebuild continues

Jvee Casio is expected to bring veteran smarts to the guard-loaded Blackwater squad for the second conference. PBA Images (file photo)

By Ivan Saldajeno

MANILA—The major Blackwater revamp continues on Tuesday as the team is set to get veteran point guard Jvee Casio and upstart big man Barkley Eboña from Alaska in exchange for Mike Tolomia.

New Bossing coach Ariel Vanguardia confirmed the development to Dugout Philippines.

"Yes, it's pending PBA approval," Vanguardia said in a text message.

The swap, once made official, will also see Alaska getting Blackwater's 2023 second round pick.

If it gets approved, it will mark the end to Casio's nine-season stint as the Aces' primary point guard.

However, the 34-year-old veteran's number dipped a bit during the PBA Philippine Cup, only averaging 6.9 points, 1.4 rebounds, 2.6 assists, and 0.9 steals in a little over 20 and a half minutes of playing time per game.

Meanwhile, Eboña, who had a promising rookie season last year, also took a dive in his stats, only playing in six games and averaging 1.7 points, 1.0 rebound, and 0.5 assists per night.

The slide in their averages affected their team's playoff bid as they were knocked out of quarterfinal contention with a very dismal 3-8 record.

On the other hand, Tolomia was one of the Bossing's bright spots during their infamous winless campaign that saw them eclipsing the league's all-time longest losing streak, scoring 11.7 points, 3.1 rebounds, 2.9 assists, 0.5 steals, and 0.1 block per game.

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