Imus inks Jayjay Helterbrand for MPBL Lakandula Cup

Imus Bandera, with new backer Khaleb Shawarma.

With the MPBL Lakandula Cup set to commence on Wednesday at the Mall of Asia Arena, the Imus Bandera-Khaleb Shawarma/GLC made a final splash in free agency, as Jayjay Helterbrand on Monday agreed to join the team for the upcoming season.

According to Imus team manager Lou Abad, "We’re happy to have finally signed Jayjay Helterbrand into our roster. His overall experience, basketball IQ, and leadership would definitely provide a huge boost for our bid in the upcoming season."

He adds, "Kaya kayang pa niya maglaro. As you can see, he is still well-conditioned given that he has not stopped in playing regularly sa iba’t-ibang mga liga. He can still keep up with the young guys."

Helterbrand ends his almost two-year hiatus from competitive basketball in joining the MPBL. One of the 40 Greatest Players in PBA history, he spent his entire 17-year career with Barangay Ginebra before calling it a day, not long after they clinched the 2017 PBA Governors' Cup title, his sixth with the franchise. Jayjay also is a six-time PBA All-Star, winning the All-Star MVP twice. He also was a two-time Mythical 1st Team selection and won the Most Valuable Player nod in 2009. The PBA Press Corps also bestowed him as the Finals MVP in the 2007 All-Filipino Cup. 

Now 42, he joins what looks like a stacked roster at Imus, who squeaked their way into the postseason at the Datu Cup with an 11-14 record as the seventh seed in the South Division. The Bandera would then bow out against defending champions Batangas City in the first round, but not before taking the Athletics to a deciding Game 3. The core of the Bandera features the likes of MC Caceres, Chad Alonzo, James Martinez, Floyd Dedicatoria, Khasim Mirza, Mark Doligon, and a trio of former University of the Philippines standouts in Mikee Reyes, Gelo Vito, and Jarrell Lim. Budds Reyes will act as the head coach.

Aside from Helterbrand, Imus also managed to snap up actor Gerald Anderson, who was in the top 10 in the league in steals when he played for the Marikina Shoemasters last campaign.

Abad says, "We’re thrilled to have Jayjay Helterbrand and Gerald Anderson play side-by-side with each other. Their additions, along with the other players that we have, will surely bolster our squad." He adds, "It’s a big win not only for our team, but for the whole league as well as we try to help MPBL grow in terms of competition level and our fanbase."

Imus, which is backed by its local government leadership of Mayor Emmanuel Maliksi, Vice Mayor Ony Cantimbuhan, and Cavite's third district Representative Alex Advincula, opens their Lakan Cup campaign on June 13 against Caloocan at the Caloocan Sports Complex.