Wikipedia

Robert Bolick

In this Philippine name, the middle name or maternal family name is Espina and the surname or paternal family name is Bolick.

Robert Lee Espina Bolick Jr. (born September 13, 1995) is a Filipino professional basketball player for the NLEX Road Warriors of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). He played college basketball for the San Beda Red Lions of the National Collegiate Athletic Association of the Philippines. He plays both point guard and shooting guard positions.

Robert Bolick
No. 8 – NLEX Road Warriors
PositionPoint guard / shooting guard
LeaguePBA
Personal information
Born (1995-09-13) September 13, 1995 (age 29)
Leyte, Philippines
NationalityFilipino
Listed height6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Listed weight178 lb (81 kg)
Career information
High schoolLa Salle Green Hills (Mandaluyong)
College
PBA draft2018: 1st round, 3rd overall pick
Selected by the NorthPort Batang Pier
Playing career2019–present
Career history
2019–2023NorthPort Batang Pier
2023Fukushima Firebonds
2023–presentNLEX Road Warriors
Career highlights and awards

High school career

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Bolick played for the La Salle Green Hills Greenies from 2011 to 2012. Bolick averaged a team-high 20.3 points for the Greenies, including a season-best 41 points against Perpetual Help in his last season. He also posted marks of 5.2 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 2.6 steals, and 1.2 blocks per outing during his last season for the Greenies.[1]

College career

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De La Salle Green Archers

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Bolick started his collegiate career in the UAAP playing for the De La Salle Green Archers in 2013. During the off-season prior, the Green Archers continued its recruiting binge for the next UAAP season by obtaining the commitment of another blue-chip high school prospect in the likeness of Robert Bolick. Head coach Gee Abanilla confirmed he had already expressed his intention to suit up for the Green Archers, following in the footsteps of Bacolod sensation Kib Montalbo.[2]

Transfer from La Salle to San Beda

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Prior to leaving the Green Archers in 2015, Bolick was a part of the La Salle squad that won the Season 76 UAAP championship, but his playing time dropped in Season 77, as he averaged 9.1 minutes per game, averaging 1.8 points per contest. He had several options after deciding to leave the Green Archers but eventually opted to move to the reigning NCAA champions San Beda Red Lions. Bolick practiced with University of the Philippines and Ateneo de Manila University, and said he felt welcomed in both squads. But in the end, he chose San Beda University (then San Beda College) because he could not pass up the opportunity to play for head coach Jamike Jarin.[3] Bolick underwent a one-year residency period and was eligible to play for San Beda in 2016, the year after former star point guard Baser Amer graduated.

San Beda Red Lions

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Bolick finally joined the Red Lions' lineup in 2016. He emerged as the unlikely face of the multi-titled San Beda team, beginning in the playoffs last season when he took over in the semifinals against University of Perpetual Help, before standing toe to toe with the prolific Jiovani Jalalon and Arellano in the finals. He helped the Red Lions gain their first title since 2014, and their sixth championship in seven years, earning himself the nickname "Beastmode Bolick". He was named the collegiate Impact Player of the Year at the 2017 Collegiate Basketball Awards.[4]

He started out his second season in San Beda averaging 13.7 points per outing before their game against the College of St. Benilde Blazers in which he, along with two other players were disqualified after a scuffle. The disqualification was especially costly for Bolick, who was in the running for MVP and Mythical Team honors. As per NCAA rules, a player who is ejected from a game is automatically disqualified from individual awards. All three players were also automatically suspended for their next games. In an interview with ABS-CBN, head coach Boyet Fernandez stated, "Bakit naman ito-throw out mo 'yung tao? Diyos ko naman. The guy was running for MVP. He destroyed the future of that guy."[5] He exited the game with 14 points, 11 assists, and seven rebounds.

Having both their two losses in the elimination round coming from the Lyceum Pirates, who just came off their historic 18-0 elimination sweep, the odds were against them in the finals. However, Bolick was the difference maker for San Beda by heavily contributing to their finals sweep. In their first game, he finished with 18 points, 7 in the fourth-quarter fightback where his passing also keyed two critical baskets that led to the Red Lions' hot finish. After drilling the 3-pointer that gave San Beda an 89-82 lead with 50 seconds remaining, adrenaline took over Bolick, who celebrated the shot with the so-called "reverse raise-the-roof" gesture popularized by LeBron James. He was similarly stoked late in Game 1, when he kept making plays and no defender was able to contain him.[6] In game 2, he had 24 points, 11 of which came in the fourth quarter. He finished the job started by Donald Tankoua, who kept San Beda in the game for the first three periods and had 27 points and 20 boards, bagging the Red Lions their 21st title and their 3rd back-to-back championship in 12 years.[7]

College statistics

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† Denotes seasons in which Bolick won a championship
Led the league
Year Team GP MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2013 †   La Salle 8 2.9 0 0 0 0.5 0.4 0.1 0 0
2014   La Salle 13 9.1 .214 .133 1.00 0.7 0.6 0.2 0.1 1.8
2016 †   San Beda TBC TBC TBC TBC TBC TBC TBC TBC TBC TBC
2017 †   San Beda 17 29.15 .412 .333 .717 6.38 5.3 .46 .08 12.54
2018 †   San Beda 18 TBC TBC TBC TBC TBC TBC TBC TBC 18.7

Playoffs

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Year Team GP MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2016 †   San Beda 5 27.93 .628 .5 .95 6.4 3 .4 .2 17.2
2017 †   San Beda 3 34.44 .473 .67 .793 4.33 4 1 .33 21
2018 †   San Beda 3 37.22 .28 .293 .75 3 9 .66 .33 13

Amateur career

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Bolick continued his rise by winning the PBA D-League Aspirant's Cup MVP award with the Cignal HD-San Beda Hawkeyes, defeating Racal Ceramica in three games winning the 2017 PBA D-League Aspirant's Cup Championship.[8]

Professional career

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NorthPort Batang Pier (2019–2023)

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Bolick was picked third overall by the NorthPort Batang Pier of the Philippine Basketball Association in the 2018 PBA draft.[9] Bolick signed a two-year max contract with NorthPort just a couple of days after being selected as the third overall pick by the Batang Pier in the 2018 PBA Rookie Draft.

In his first game, he scored 10 points in his first six minutes in the PBA, had nine in the third quarter before adding the finishing touches in the final frame including a tough step back jumper from the deep right corner in front of his team’s bench. He debuted with a game-high 26 points on 10-of-12 shooting from the field on top of three rebounds and three assists in close to 36 minutes of play, setting a franchise record for most points scored by a rookie in a debut.

With teammates Stanley Pringle and Sean Anthony out due to injuries, he became the Batang Pier's first option and was named as the Player of the Week[10] and the unanimous Rookie of the Month for June 2019.[11]

On February 1, 2022, Bolick became a restricted free agent after his contract expired and he did not sign an extension with NorthPort.[12] He eventually signed a new one-year maximum contract with NorthPort on February 11.[13][14] On February 1, 2023, Bolick once again became a restricted free agent after his previous contract expired, but he signed a new one-conference contract with NorthPort on February 8.[15]

Fukushima Firebonds (2023)

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On May 15, 2023, Bolick moved overseas for the first time as he signed with Fukushima Firebonds of the B2 League.[16][17] His contract is for two years with the second year being a player option.[18]

On October 19, 2023, he was released by the team as per his request.[19] He rescinded his ties with the Firebonds to tend to his pregnant wife.[20] He only played one game for the team before being released.

NLEX Road Warriors (2023–present)

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On December 11, 2023, Bolick's PBA playing rights was traded to the NLEX Road Warriors in a three-team trade involving NLEX, NorthPort, and San Miguel Beermen.[21] On December 17, he officially signed a three-year contract with the team.[22]

Personal life

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Bolick is married to Cassandra Yu, a social media influencer and flight attendant, since May 2022.[23] He was previously in a relationship with volleyball player Aby Maraño from 2013 to 2021.[24]

PBA career statistics

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Legend
  GP Games played   GS Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field-goal percentage  3P%  3-point field-goal percentage  FT%  Free-throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high

As of the end of 2023–24 season[25]

Season-by-season averages

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Year Team GP MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2019 NorthPort 32 34.2 .385 .274 .792 5.1 4.9 .9 .3 13.5
2021 NorthPort 22 41.2 .402 .261 .750 6.9 8.2 1.4 .2 19.1
2022–23 NorthPort 29 38.3 .435 .305 .828 5.0 6.1 .7 .1 20.4
2023–24 NLEX 16 38.7 .444 .296 .875 5.3 7.5 .9 .1 25.3
Career 99 37.7 .416 .284 .816 5.5 6.4 .9 .2 18.7

References

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  1. ^ Terrado, Reuben (February 13, 2013). "LSGH star Bolick's commitment brings in another key piece for rebuilding Archers". Spin.ph. Retrieved October 13, 2017.
  2. ^ "Robert Lee Bolick Jr. - DLSU Green Archers | Game Central | SPIN.ph - Sports Interactive Network Philippines". Archived from the original on November 8, 2017. Retrieved March 2, 2018.
  3. ^ "Why Rober Bolick left La Salle for San Beda". ABS-CBN Sports. March 11, 2015.
  4. ^ Wires, The. "Montalbo, Potts to be honored with Pivotal Player awards; Desiderio named 'Breakout Player'". Sports Interactive Network.
  5. ^ "3 ejected as scuffle mars San Beda-CSB game". ABS-CBN Sports. September 5, 2017.
  6. ^ "San Beda's Robert Bolick has a habit of breaking Lyceum's hearts". ABS-CBN Sports. November 16, 2017. Retrieved November 26, 2017.
  7. ^ "San Beda goes for the kill in Game 2 of the NCAA Finals". ABS-CBN Sports. ABS-CBN Sports. November 15, 2017. Retrieved November 26, 2017.
  8. ^ "San Beda star Robert Bolick wants to be an inspiration to all benchwarmers out there". Spin.ph.
  9. ^ "Robert Bolick signs 2-year max deal with NorthPort". Inquirer. December 18, 2018.
  10. ^ "Robert Bolick: NorthPort's rising star". PBA.ph. June 26, 2019. Retrieved June 26, 2019.
  11. ^ "NorthPort's Robert Bolick unanimous choice for PBAPC Rookie of the Month honor". PBA.ph. July 17, 2019. Retrieved July 17, 2019.
  12. ^ Starridge, C.A. (February 2, 2022). "Robert Bolick does not sign extension with NorthPort". Tiebreaker Times. Retrieved February 12, 2022.
  13. ^ Li, Matthew (February 12, 2022). "Robert Bolick re-ups with Northport". Tiebreaker Times. Retrieved February 12, 2022.
  14. ^ Li, Matthew (January 22, 2023). "Northport has no timeframe on Bolick extension as contract expires at end of month". Tiebreaker Times. Retrieved January 23, 2023.
  15. ^ Terrado, Reuben (February 8, 2023). "Robert Bolick returns for NorthPort after signing conference-long deal". Spin.ph. Retrieved February 8, 2023.
  16. ^ "[2023.05.15] 【新規】B.LEAGUE 2023-24 シーズン 選手契約締結（ロバート・ボリック選手）のお知らせ" [[2023.05.15] [New] B.LEAGUE 2023-24 Season Player Contract Conclusion (Robert Bolick)]. firebonds.jp (in Japanese). May 15, 2023. Retrieved May 15, 2023.
  17. ^ Agcaoili, Lance (May 15, 2023). "Robert Bolick signs with Japan B.League Division 2 club Fukushima". sports.inquirer.net. Retrieved May 15, 2023.
  18. ^ Terrado, Reuben (June 1, 2023). "Robert Bolick says Japan B.League move not about the money". Spin.ph. Retrieved June 2, 2023.
  19. ^ Li, Matthew (October 19, 2023). "Fukushima grants Bolick's request for a release". Tiebreaker Times. Retrieved October 19, 2023.
  20. ^ "Robert Bolick says wife's pregnancy prompted decision to leave B.League". Sports Interactive Network Philippines. October 19, 2023. Retrieved October 19, 2023.
  21. ^ "NorthPort deals Bolick to NLEX, Trollano to SMB". pba.ph. December 11, 2023. Retrieved December 11, 2023.
  22. ^ "NLEX Road Warriors Secure Three-Year Deal with Robert Bolick". arangkadanlex.com. NLEX Road Warriors. December 17, 2023. Retrieved December 17, 2023.
  23. ^ "Bolick ties the knot with partner Cassandra in intimate Cebu wedding". Sports Interactive Network Philippines. May 23, 2022. Retrieved October 19, 2023.
  24. ^ Lariosa, Saab (May 24, 2022). "Robert Bolick addresses ex Aby Maraño, defends wife in lengthy post: 'Di porket lalaki kami kaagad may kasalanan'". The Philippine Star. Retrieved September 7, 2024.
  25. ^ "Robert Bolick Profile, NLEX Road Warriors - RealGM". basketball.realgm.com.
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