An American-Panamanian journeyman will be at the helm when Meralco competes in the Philippine Basketball Association Commissioner’s Cup.

Akil Mitchell, a 6-foot-9 slotman, is already in town to power the Bolts in the season-ending conference that opens on 27 November.

The 32-year-old Mitchell is said to be arriving in great shape after campaigning for the Qingdao Eagles in the Chinese Basketball Association.

Prior to that, he played for the Panamanian national squad as well as had stints in France, Australia, Turkey, Puerto Rico, Greece, Germany, and the National Basketball Association (NBA) G League after going undrafted in 2014.

Meralco coach Luigi Trillo is thrilled to have Mitchell on board as they aim to beef up their frontline following the retirement of their resident import Allen Durham.

But leading the Bolts to the crown will not be easy as other teams have also boosted their respective squads with quality reinforcements.

NLEX, for one, will be bringing in NBA veteran Ed Davis while Converge will roll with another NBA campaigner Cheick Diallo.

Terrafirma acquired the services of seven-footer Ryan Richards, NorthPort hired 6-foot-11 Kavell Bigby Richards, and Phoenix recruited 6-foot-10 Donovan Smith.