ANALYSIS: Lucero traded to Magnolia for Jalalon, Tratter
Original photos courtesy of: PBA Images
A month before Zavier Lucero was drafted into the PBA, he spoke with ALL-STAR Magazine’s own Naveen Ganglani to discuss his potential landing spot.
“Would it be nice to go to a winning team? Of course,” said Lucero on an episode of The Navs Effect. With a sly smile, he added, “Because winning is fun.”
Well, Mr. Lucero, it appears that you’re in for plenty of fun.
On Monday afternoon, news broke of Zavier Lucero being dealt by Northport to Magnolia in exchange for Jio Jalalon and Abu Tratter. After playing less than a full season in the PBA—a league that he’d targeted for quite some time—Lucero now gets to play for a team that has a long history of winning.
Since joining the PBA in 1988, the Magnolia franchise has won 14 league titles. Last season, the Hotshots finished above .500 after the elimination round in both conferences. Though their time in the Philippine Cup came to an abrupt end in the quarterfinals, Magnolia went the distance in the Commissioner’s Cup before losing the title series to eventual champions San Miguel.
So how does Lucero fit into this Magnolia team? Pretty well, actually.
For starters, the former Fighting Maroon has a unique combination of skills that none of his new teammates—whether guard, forward, or big—can claim to have. An athletic specimen with agile feet and an impressive vertical leap, Lucero can crash the boards and defend three to four positions without missing a beat. A frontcourt of Lucero, Ian Sangalang, and James Laput could be Magnolia’s version of the Sampayan Brigade.
As for the other end of the floor, Lucero is actually a more prolific scorer when he doesn’t have the ball in his hands. This means that Mark Barroca, Paul Lee and even Calvin Abueva can get creative with lobbing the ball or throwing backdoor passes to a cutting Lucero. Plus, since his days with UP, his perimeter shooting has steadily progressed, giving him another tool to work with in Chito Victolero’s offense.
As fascinating as Lucero’s next chapter is, there’s another side to the story of his trade. Heads up: The players dealt for Lucero are no slouches. Not by any stretch of the imagination.
Essentially, Lucero is stepping into the Magnolia rotation in place of Abu Tratter, a 6-foot-5 bruiser who once donned Gilas colors. Though Tratter averaged less points and rebounds than Lucero in the 2024 Philippine Cup—which, by the way, is the only valid comparison as Lucero sat out the Commissioner’s Cup—he is nevertheless a skilled power forward who brings size, physicality, and post moves to the Batang Pier’s frontcourt.
Joining Tratter in Northport is Jio Jalalon, another former national team player who will now be playing for his second team in the PBA. His Commissioner’s Cup numbers (12.1 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 5.5 assists) were better than his Philippine Cup stats (7.1 points, 4.4 rebounds, 4.2 assists), but more importantly, Jalalon immediately becomes the best floor general that the Batang Pier have on their roster. Fran Yu and the newly drafted Evan Nelle have plenty to learn from the former Arellano stalwart.
Naturally, the next question is: Was this a fair trade? Again, using Lucero’s lone conference in the PBA as the basis, the combined numbers of Jalalon and Tratter (4.5 rebounds and 3 rebounds per game) are not that far off Lucero’s averages (12.1 points, 5.4 rebounds). Beyond the statistics, though, the transaction plays out like this: Northport gets an experienced point guard and a big body in exchange for a sophomore with an extremely high ceiling.
In other words, not bad. By getting two key rotation pieces, the Batang Pier improve their chances of winning at a high clip next season. 11 wins out of 22 elimination-round games is decent, not stellar. In that regard, Jalalon and Tratter can help right away.
As for Lucero—who helped the UP Fighting Maroons win their first basketball title in 36 years—he’s now in a position to contend for a championship in his young PBA career. As he pursues his first pro ring, Lucero will be surrounded by a multitalented roster, a coaching staff that knows what it’s doing, and a front office that can get the team whatever the heck they want.
What’s the word for that? Fun.