Barangay Ginebra added more depth into its backcourt after picking up Jesper "MJ" Ayaay from the free agency pool.
Gin Kings head coach Tim Cone bared the deal on his Twitter page Monday.
"We welcome newly-signed MJ Ayaay to the Ginebra Family! We're looking forward to pairing him with Scottie (Thompson) in the backcourt," Cone wrote.
We welcome newly signed MJ Ayaay to the Ginebra Family! We're looking forward to pairing him with Scottie in the backcourt.
— Tim Cone (@manilacone) February 8, 2021
Ayaay, the ninth overall pick of Alaska in the 2018 PBA Draft, was recently dropped by the Aces along with guard Abel Galliguez and center Yutien Andrada. Terms of his deal with Ginebra were not disclosed.
The 27-year-old guard played in all 12 of Alaska's games in the 2020 Philippine Cup and averaged 3.1 points and 2.5 rebounds on 43.3 percent shooting from the field. The Aces reached the quarterfinals, but they couldn't overcome a twice-to-beat disadvantage against TNT.
Cone said Ginebra has always had an eye on the former Lyceum standout ever since he made the jump to the pros.
"He was our target to draft when he came out from college, but Alaska beat us to him, so we've had our eye on him ever since," Cone said in a text message. "We just feel MJ is a guy who can fit into our system and flourish in our defense. We like his makeup, his length, and his toughness on defense."
Ginebra also recently signed Greg Slaughter to a contract, although terms of that deal have not been made public as well.