Hotshots’ William Navarro heads to South Korea with Busan KCC Egis
PBA RISING STAR William Navarro of the Magnolia Hotshots is officially headed to Korea with Busan KCC Egis.
Busan on Tuesday announced the signing of Mr. Navarro for the upcoming 2025-2026 season, ending a short stint with Magnolia after a mid-conference trade from NorthPort in the just-concluded 2025 PBA Philippine Cup.
“Welcome, (Mr.) William. We ask for lots of support and encouragement to William Navarro, who is making a new start at KCC Egis,” said the Korean Basketball League (KBL) club.
It will be Mr. Navarro’s international league debut at last after a foiled stint with the Samsung Seoul Thunders in 2022.
The 6-foot-6 Ateneo standout then signed with Seoul but took a U-turn instead to honor his contract obligations with Gilas Pilipinas and the NorthPort, which had his playing rights after picking him as the No. 2 pick in the 2021 special draft.
Mr. Navarro eventually played for the Batang Pier but sustained an ACL injury in the same year before coming back to fine form as one of the team’s best players in 2023 and 2024.
The 28-year-old forward had his breakout performance this season, especially in the Philippine Cup with a double-double average of 20.57 points and 10.57 rebounds laced by 1.86 assists and 1.14 steals for the Batang Pier.
Midway through the tourney though, he was traded to the Hotshots in exchange for Calvin Abueva, Jerrick Balanza and second round pick in the PBA Season 51 draft.
Mr. Navarro played only five games for the Hotshots, who will be left without any returns from the Mr. Abueva trade after all in a new era under head coach LA Tenorio in lieu of long-time mentor Chito Victolero.
Aside from Magnolia, Mr. Navarro’s former team NorthPort also lost a key piece in Arvin Tolentino, who will likewise take his talents to Korea after signing with the Seoul SK Knights.
SK Knights topped the regular season with a 41-13 slate but bowed to Gilas ace Carl Tamayo and the Changwon LG Sakers in the KBL finals while Mr. Navarro’s team Busan missed the playoffs at ninth place with an 18-36 mark. — John Bryan Ulanday
