THE Philippine Basketball Association gets fresh talent with the conduct on Sunday of the annual rookie draft.
Set to happen at the Robinsons Place Manila, the draft allows the 12 teams in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) to add on new players from a pool of 55 players, as of this writing, from the amateur ranks.
But unlike the previous years, this edition of the PBA rookie draft will have two batches with a separate special draft for Gilas pool players.
The rights for those drafted in the special draft cannot be traded and the players selected will not be allowed to be traded for two years.
All players will be allowed to play for the teams that drafted them but will be pulled out two months before an official FIBA tournament as stipulated in an agreement between the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas, Inc. and the PBA.
Short-listed for the special draft are amateur standouts Mac Belo, Jio Jalalon, Von Pessumal, Kevin Ferrer, Russell Escoto, Roger Pogoy, Mike Tolomia, Arnold Van Opstal, Matthew Wright, Alfonso Gotladera, Ed Daquioag and Carl Bryan Cruz. Said players are part of the national team pool.
The order of selection in the special draft is as follows: Blackwater Elite, Star Hotshots, Phoenix Fuel Masters, Mahindra Enforcers, GlobalPort Batang Pier, NLEX Road Warriors, Meralco Bolts, TNT Ka-Tropa, Rain or Shine Elastopainters, Barangay Ginebra San Miguel Kings, Alaska Aces and San Miguel Beermen.
(Update: In a decision late yesterday, the PBA Board of Governors after a lengthy meeting decided to “distribute” the Gilas cadet players to each of the 12 teams instead of going through the motion of drafting. All teams have already made their choices and each squad, by alphabetical order, will reveal them on draft day on Sunday. It was said that the “pre-agreement” on the special draft was arrived at in accordance with the SBP’s thrust to include all the PBA teams in the affairs concerning the national team.)
The “regular” draft, meanwhile, has players who are not included in the Gilas pool like Raphael Banal, Gelo Alolino, Jonathan Grey, Paolo Javelona, Mikee Reyes, Chris Javier, Raymond Jamito, Jeff Javillonar and Joseph Eriobu.
Blackwater anew picks first in the first round of the regular draft, followed by Phoenix (from Star), Ginebra (from Phoenix), Mahindra, Star (from GlobalPort), San Miguel (from NLEX), Meralco, NLEX (from TNT), Rain or Shine, Ginebra, Alaska and Phoenix (from San Miguel).
‘STACKED’
Despite being viewed by many as not so deep compared to previous rookie draft batches, local basketball analyst Levi Verora, Jr. sees the 2016 rookie crop “stacked.”
“I think the 2016 rookie draft batch is stacked. Not necessarily like those in previous years but the players have what it takes to play in the PBA. Most of them may not be household names but they are established players in the collegiate ranks,” said the analyst in an interview with BusinessWorld.
Mr. Verora said he believes former Far Eastern University standout Belo would wind up as the top pick because of the skills set that he brings to the team that gets to select him.
“Mac Belo is a complete player. He has range, can rebound, play the wing and four spot. He can have an immediate impact in the PBA, in this case maybe Blackwater,” he said.
For Star, Phoenix and Mahindra, who are next to pick in the special draft, the analyst said the tack has to be upgrading the roster that they have.
He, however, underscored that the pick of Star is going to be interesting following the blockbuster deal that sent longtime face of the franchise James Yap to Rain or Shine for All-Star guard Paul Lee.
“It’s going to be interesting how Star will use its pick. Will it use it to get the next best talent available in Jio Jalalon or use it to fill the void left by Yap by selecting a player like Kevin Ferrer? If the Hoshots get Jalalon, they have to do something about their crowded backcourt, maybe trade one or two of them. Ferrer, if they decide to go that way, should help cushion the loss of Yap with his ability to hit the outside shot,” Mr. Verora said.
He also mentioned Escoto, Wright, Van Opstal and Cruz as players who should figure prominently early in the special draft.
For the regular draft, Mr. Verora said Alolino of National University and Javier of the University of the East should get notable considerations.
“Gelo has Gilas experience and can create plays for his teammates and worthy to be picked while Javier is a established player who can contribute in different ways. He (Javier) may be a bit undersized for the power forward spot but he can play,” the analyst said.