The Bolts Sign Another "Black" to One-Year Deal

There's no stopping this one: Norman Black won't be the lone "Black" in the Meralco Bolts when the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) returns to action. And frankly, this one was inevitable considering who the Meralco Bolts have picked up during the 2019 PBA Rookie Draft last December.

The father-son tandem of Norman and Aaron Black is set to become the third father-son tandem that will be hitting a PBA court together after the Bolts signed Aaron Black- the 18th overall draft pick last year, to a one-year deal. This follows the trend that Robert Jaworksi and his son Dudut started in the '90s when both Jaworskis spent some time with the Ginebra franchise and even won the 1997 Commissioner's Cup title together. More than a decade later, Ato Agustin also handled his son, Marc during their time together with Petron for the 2012 Commissioner's Cup. In other words, the reunion of Coach Norman Black and his son and namesake in Meralco isn't a strange thing in the PBA considering that Norman Black has a stepson in the Meralco coaching staff: Chris Tan.

incidentally, Norman Black was also at the helm of the Sta. Lucia Realtors when Chris Tan nailed a clutch trey that enabled the Realtors to win the championship in the 2001 edition of the Governors' Cup. That was the first championship of the Realtors and one of Coach Norman's 11 PBA championships as a coach.

And ever since Aaron Black started making noise in the collegiate and amateur levels, many basketball pundits are expecting greater things from the younger Black. After all, he once finished with 45 points, 18 assists, and 12 rebounds in a PBA D-League game. Aaron Black is beyond out, a talented player and he has the numbers to back that up but let's also remember one thing: he's still a rookie and it means that he still needs to compete for his minutes.

While Aaron Black's debut has to wait until the threat of the 2019 Novel Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) has been contained, there's no denying the fact that he will make his father proud once the season gets rolling again. After all, he has two things: he is Norman Aaron Black and secondly, a determination that he is more than his father's son. Whether or not those will add another championship to his father's name is something that we'll need to watch out for. 

Photo is from ABS CBN Sports