Arvin Tolentino

In this Philippine name, the middle name or maternal family name is de Leonand the surname or paternal family name is Tolentino.

Arvin Tolentino

Tolentino in 2023
No. 10–NorthPort Batang Pier
Position	Small forward / power forward
League	PBA
Personal information
Born	(1995-11-05) November 5, 1995 (age 29) Angono, Rizal, Philippines
Nationality	Filipino
Listed height	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Listed weight	210 lb (95 kg)
Career information
High school	San Beda (Taytay, Rizal)
College	Ateneo (2014–2015) FEU (2017–2018)
PBA draft	2019: 1st round, 10th overall pick
Selected by the Barangay Ginebra San Miguel
Playing career	2019–present
Career history
2019	Batangas City Athletics
2020–2022	Barangay Ginebra San Miguel
2022–present	NorthPort Batang Pier
Career highlights and awards
2× PBA champion (2020 Philippine, 2021 Governors') 2× PBA All-Star (2023, 2024) PBA First Mythical Team (2024) PBA Second Mythical Team (2023) PBA All-Rookie Team (2020) UAAP Rookie of the Year (2014)
Medals Men's basketball Representing   Philippines Asian Games 2022 Hangzhou Team Southeast Asian Games 2023 Phnom Penh Team

Arvin Dave de Leon Tolentino (born November 5, 1995) is a Filipino professional basketball player for the NorthPort Batang Pier of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). He was drafted 10th overall pick by the Barangay Ginebra San Miguel in the 2019 PBA draft. ^[1]

Early life

Tolentino grew up in Angono, Rizal. ^[2] He first started playing basketball at 12 years old. ^[3] He was trained by a friend of his father. ^[3]

Throughout high school, he played for the Red Cubs of the San Beda University. In his time there, San Beda won the championship 5 straight times. ^[4] He was on the NCAA Mythical Team and a Finals MVP. ^[4]

Tolentino played in the 2013 SEAOIL NBTC Games, which showcases many players from various high schools around the country, and won Finals MVP. ^[5] He also participated in the Adidas Nations Global 2013 and Slam Rising Stars Classic. ^{[6] [7]}

Tolentino received offers to play college varsity basketball from top Philippine universities such as Ateneo de Manila, De La Salle, National University, as well as his own alma mater, San Beda University. ^[8] He also received offers from American universities Duke and Rhode Island. ^[8] He committed to play college basketball to the Blue Eagles of the Ateneo de Manila University. ^[9]

College career

Ateneo Blue Eagles (2014–2015)

Tolentino debuted against the Adamson Soaring Falcons with 12 points. ^[10] Against La Salle he had 14 points, 10 rebounds, and 2 blocks. ^[10] In their match against the UP Fighting Maroons, he had 20 points and 8 rebounds. ^[10] For these performances, he was given the nickname "A-Train". ^[10] He finished the season as the Season 77 Rookie of the Year. ^[11]

He didn't have a good start in Season 78, as he had to adjust to playing center, and started losing minutes. ^{[12] [13]} He averaged just 3 points in their first six games. ^[14] He broke through that season in their game against the UST Growling Tigers, scoring 16 of his 20 points in the second half to give Ateneo the win. ^[15] Their season was ended when Mac Belo hit a buzzer-beating shot in their semifinals series. ^[16]

He failed to make Ateneo's grade requirements for the following season, so he was dropped by Ateneo. ^[17]

FEU Tamaraws

Tolentino transferred to FEU in time for Season 80, after Ateneo dropped him. ^[18] In his first match against his former team, he scored 11 points, but Ateneo took the win. ^[19] He had a career-high 23 points in their win against NU. ^[20] He was suspended for one game after getting two unsportsmanlike fouls in his previous game. ^[21] They made it to the Final Four where he faced his former team. ^[22] He had 13 points as his team won Game 1. ^[22] In Game 2, he had a turnover that allowed Ateneo to win the game in overtime. ^[23]

The next season, Season 81, he switched his jersey number from #13 to #41. ^[24] He was ejected from their game against Adamson after clotheslining Sean Manganti and served a one-game suspension. ^[25] He was suspended for two games after hitting UST player Zach Huang in the face. ^{[26] [27]} He hit a game-winning three to send FEU to the Final Four, making up for his blunder the previous season. ^[28] His college career ended when Ateneo beat them in their semifinal series. ^[29]

Professional career

Barangay Ginebra San Miguel (2020–2022)

Tolentino applied for the 2019 PBA Draft. ^[30] He was drafted 10th overall in the first round by the Barangay Ginebra San Miguel. ^[31] In his third game for Ginebra, he scored 11 points against the Meralco Bolts. ^[32] In his first semifinal game, he scored 13 points and had 5 rebounds. ^[33] In his 2020 PBA Philippine Cup finals debut, he had 14 points, 4 rebounds, and 3 steals, with his game-tying layup, as Ginebra won Game 1. ^[34] Ginebra eventually won the championship. ^[35] He also finished the season as a nominee for Rookie of the Year, and a member of the All-Rookie Team. ^{[36] [37]}

NorthPort Batang Pier (2022–present)

On September 20, 2022, Tolentino, along with Prince Caperal and a 2022 first-round pick, was traded to the NorthPort Batang Pier for Jamie Malonzo. ^[38]

On November 12, 2023, Tolentino scored a then career-high of 35 points and recorded nine rebounds in a 113–103 win against the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters. ^[39] On August 29, 2024, he scored a new career-high of 51 points in a 135–109 victory against the Converge FiberXers, becoming the first local player since 2018 to have scored 50 or more points in a PBA game. ^[40] On September 8, 2024, Tolentino recorded his 1st triple-double of his career with 23 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists in a 133–107 victory against the Terrafirma Dyip. ^[41]

PBA career statistics

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 ^[42]

Season-by-season averages

Year	Team	GP	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
2020	Barangay Ginebra	21	15.3	.305	.246	.833	2.5	.7	.2	.3	4.5
2021	Barangay Ginebra	27	15.1	.361	.313	.652	1.9	.4	.4	.3	6.1
2022–23	Barangay Ginebra	32	31.1	.433	.388	.808	4.8	1.2	.9	.7	14.5
	NorthPort
2023–24	NorthPort	23	34.2	.452	.308	.777	6.6	3.3	1.6	1.0	21.8
Career		103	24.4	.413	.333	.780	4.0	1.4	.8	.6	11.9

National team career

In his younger years, Tolentino played for the Philippines in numerous tournaments. He was a member of the RP U16 & U18 teams. ^[4] In 2013, he played for the Philippines in the FIBA Asia 3x3 U18 Championship, along with Thirdy Ravena, Prince Rivero, and Kobe Paras. ^[43] That same team also played in the 2013 FIBA 3x3 U18 World Championships. ^[44]

In 2022, Tolentino was one of the final cuts from the final Gilas Pilipinas roster for the fifth window of the FIBA World Cup 2023 Asian Qualifiers. ^[45]

Personal life

Tolentino is married to Brandy Kramer, younger sister of former PBA player Doug Kramer. ^[46] They have two daughters.

References

1. "Roosevelt Adams is top pick of 2019 PBA Draft". PBA.ph.
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5. "SEAOIL |". www.seaoil.com.ph. Retrieved January 21, 2022.
6. "Two Blue Eagles represent PH in Adidas Nations Global 2013". The GUIDON. September 14, 2013. Retrieved January 21, 2022.
7. Rappler.com. "Slam Rising Stars Classic to feature best high school cagers". Rappler. Retrieved January 21, 2022.
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36. Terrado, Reuben (January 6, 2021). "Arvin Tolentino's award nomination the cherry on top of memorable rookie year". Spin.ph. Archived from the original on January 6, 2021. Retrieved January 23, 2022.
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39. Micaller, Bea (November 12, 2023). "Arvin Tolentino drops 35 and 9 vs. ROS as NorthPort goes 2-0". GMANetwork.com . Retrieved November 14, 2023.
40. Terrado, Reuben (August 29, 2024). "Tolentino's 51-point explosion highlights NorthPort romp vs Converge". Spin.ph. Retrieved August 29, 2024.
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45. Bacnis, Justine (November 12, 2022). "Arvin Tolentino has no regrets despite being cut by Gilas". Tiebreaker Times. Retrieved December 5, 2022.
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External links

• Arvin Tolentino at RealGM
• Arvin Tolentino at PBA.ph