Maroons get Kobe Paras

One by one, the valuable pieces of a potential championship puzzle are falling into place for University of the Philippines.

Two months after securing the services of high-flying guard Ricci Rivero from powerhouse La Salle, the Fighting Maroons got another blue-chip recruit in touted wingman Kobe Paras, giving them another potent weapon in their bid to end the school’s UAAP title drought spanning for more than three decades.

In an official statement released to media outlets yesterday, UP coach Bo Perasol could not help but expressed his excitement over their latest off-season coup, with the 6-foot-6 Paras, 20, resuming his promising career in local soil following a relatively unproductive stint back in the US NCAA.

The son of former UP superstar and pro league great Benjie, who powered the Fighting Maroons to their lone UAAP crown back in 1986, will also have a reunion of sorts with the 6-foot-1 Rivero after they played together for just a lone season in the high school ranks with La Salle-Greenhills in 2013.