Luigi Trillo gets new two-year deal with Alaska, to bring in top assistants

AKTV/Paolo Papa

The Alaska Aces have decided to stick with Luigi Trillo as coach of the team for the next two years, even while giving the young mentor the leeway to retool his coaching staff.

“I was given a two-year deal,” said Trillo. “There are some little changes in the contract, but it should all be good. I will need to interview for new assistants.”

The move comes even as the Aces performed poorly in Trillo’s first conference at the helm after replacing Joel Banal. Under the new coach, Alaska finished tied for last place in the Governors’ Cup.

Trillo said he will be adding a few new faces to his coaching staff. He has already secured commitments from top college coaches Louie Alas of Letran and Leo Austria to Adamson to join the Alaska braintrust, and is looking to add Alex Compton, a former Powerade assistant coach whose current status is up in the air after the sale of the Tigers’ franchise.

“These coaches have their own strengths. Louie is good as a defensive coach. Leo is a good situational coach while Compton, though he doesn’t have much experience in coaching, has a lot of potential as a skills coach,” said Trillo.

He added that he is also looking to hire a couple more people, such as former Alaska assistant coach Aric del Rosario, who currently coaches Perpetual Help, and former Powerade assistant coach Charles Tiu.

“Aric is a father figure. I want to bring in a younger coach, but Mr. Uytengsu told me to get somebody older, so I’m thinking of bringing Aric. Charles, on the other hand, is good at scouting, so I might find a place for him in the coaching staff,” said Trillo.

Alaska stumbled to one of its worst seasons in franchise history after the departure of longtime coach Tim Cone. But the futility would come with a reward: the second overall pick in the upcoming PBA draft.

“I’m excited to start the next few months to build our team,” said Trillo.

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