Ravena admitted that instead of the young guns learning from the pros, it was the other way around.

“Grabe ‘yung growth ng mga bata kaya nakakatuwa talaga. The most positive thing about it is nadala rin kaming mga PBA players sa growth na ‘yun,” he said.

“Akala namin sila ‘yung mga may matututunan sa amin, pero it was the other way around. We’ve learned a lot from them, and we are thankful for that.”

Justine Baltazar was among the cadets that were noticed by Ravena given his improvement in the bubble.

Gilas Program Director Tab Baldwin made the 6-foot-8 big man his project as he wanted to convert Baltazar into a wing player.

With Baltazar training for the last three months, Ravena shared how he observed the improvement of the La Salle standout with his ability to slash and his shooting outside the three-point line.

Moreover, the National Team Captain warned the UAAP to watch out for ‘Big Nasty’, their nickname given to Baltazar, in the upcoming Season 84. 

Ravena was among the first ones to arrive at their training bubble at Inspire Sports Academy in Calamba, Laguna which officially commenced on January 15.

CJ Perez, Roger Pogoy, Troy Rosario, Justin Chua, and Raul Soyud were among the PBA players called for the Calambubble.

Also, Kai Sotto, Dwight Ramos, and Justine Baltazar, Juan and Javi Gomez de Liano, Rey Suerte, Matt and Mike Nieto, Calvin Oftana, William Navarro, Dave Ildefonso, Kemark Carino, and prospective naturalized player Ange Kouame were part of the Gilas training pool.