Evan Nelle won't be giving any hot takes any time soon.
"Of course, we're a new team. I mean, we're the same team, but new coaches, new system. That's something we still have to get used to," he stated.
"But I think we're doing pretty well. We're confident. I still see our team as contenders. I hope we win it all."
A year after calling his La Salle Green Archers "the best team" heading into UAAP Season 85 only for them to fall short of the Final Four, Nelle has taken a different route for his final year in the collegiate level.
That's not to say, though, that the 24-year-old is lacking confidence -- in his new coach in Topex Robinson, in his determined squad, and in himself.
"Coach Topex gave me the keys to the team. He allows me to do what I see fit. He sees things I don't see, I see things he doesn't see, and the thing is, we communicate really well," he shared.
"We learn from each other and help each other for the betterment of the team."
Alongside the NU Bulldogs, La Salle is the most intact side in Season 86, parading the same core of Nelle, Mark Nonoy, Kevin Quiambao, and Mike Phillips to go along with talented new faces in Jonnel Policarpio and Joshua David. Late loss to archrival Ateneo Blue Eagles aside, they've had a strong start to the season -- with a share of second in the standings at 3-1.
That's exactly why Nelle is quite confident that words once spoken may very well become words now true -- albeit just a lot late.
"My first year in [San] Beda, we won, but I barely played. Ever since then, I didn't win any championships. This one would be really sweet 'cause it's for La Salle," he expressed.
"They gave me a fresh start. You could feel the love from everybody. Ang sarap lang kung mare-repay ko yung binibigay nila sa'kin."
The 5-foot-10 guard won several titles in high school before moving up to San Beda University and winning it all as a rookie-understudy to Robert Bolick. After that, however, he lost in the NCAA Season 95 Finals, lost in the UAAP Season 84 Final Four, and missed the UAAP Season 85 playoff bus.
Since then, his haters have had a lot of fuel for their already-burning fire.
Still, Nelle isn't about to give guarantees -- other than vowing to go all-out.
"Just wait and see. I really don't want to say anything anymore because I haven't reached the UAAP Finals. We always do come up short in close games, but I think we're readier now," he remarked.
"We're hungrier. Just wait and see."
His doubters say he can't step up to the plate, he can't win big games, he can't be the guy.
Without a doubt, however, he has also been key to all his squads' contention. While he and his sides have fallen short on the big stage and under the bright lights more than a few times, he has contributed in carrying them there in the first place.
Nelle has been a winner in all levels, and just one more championship in his last season for the Green Archers will change the narrative around him.
"I always wanted to be the winner, I always wanted to be on top. I'm really competitive," he expressed.
"I hate losing. It's been that way since I was a kid. Even in practice, I had to win. I was always a sore loser.
"I always love winning. It's just a really good feeling. Nakakaadik lang talaga manalo."
Indeed, the hurt can't be hidden from his face after losses. He plays to win, and anything aside from that is unacceptable to him.
And so, he's had it with all the photos of him slumped, stumped, and stopped. He's had it with all the exhibits presented in the case against his being a primetime player and playmaker.
Now, all Nelle wants and needs is a memory of working and leading La Salle back to the promised land for the first time since 2016. All he wants and needs is a lasting image of being a magnanimous victor.
"I'm confident because of the work I put in. I don't like people seeing the work that I do, but I know I do the work and I believe I do more work than almost everybody else," he furthered.
"That's where my confidence comes from. I never want anybody to outwork me."
Evan Nelle is a sore loser -- and that's a double-edged sword.
While that has sliced and diced him in recent history, he's as confident as ever that now is the perfect time to wield it into becoming the UAAP's conqueror.