Malick Diouf to Suit Up for TNT in PBA Semis

In a mad rush to bring in an import to take over the spot at the last minute, TNT decided to tap Gilas Pilipinas naturalized player Malick Diouf to suit up for the Tropang Giga for Game 3 of their best-of-seven semifinals series against the Meralco Bolts on Sunday.

TNT team manager Jojo Lastimosa confirmed that Diouf, who was already given the signal to reinforce the Gilas Pilipinas 3×3 team in major international competitions, will become the team’s temporary reinforcement, while the squad is still negotiating for the other candidates to take over the spot of Bol Manute Bol, who hurt his Achilles and couldn’t finish the Tropang Giga’s Game 2 on Friday night at the Mall of Asia Arena.

Without Bol, TNT dropped a 76-87 loss to Meralco as the series is now tied at 1-1 apiece.

Asked by All-Star Magazine whether Gilas naturalized players are being considered to replace Bol, Lastimosa responded with a Viber message.

“Diouf. He will be in practice,” wrote Lastimosa.

Diouf, who also played for University of the Philippines, led the team to a championship and captured an MVP award, told the author that he’s excited to be part of TNT and join the PBA.

“I’m excited, but I’m not sure yet if I can play because we’re still waiting for the papers to be fixed (GAB and other requirements needed by the PBA),” added Diouf.

The PBA Commissioner’s Office confirmed as of 11:30 a.m. Saturday that there’s no import enlisted yet by TNT to replace Bol.