2011 PBA draft notes
To no one's surprise, the Powerade Tigers made JV Casio the top overall pick in the 2011 Philippine Basketball Association draft held Sunday at Robinsons Place Ermita. The Rain or Shine Elastopainters also did as expected, tabbing Paul Lee with the second pick.
"He's not really a rookie," said Powerade coach Bo Perasol of Casio. "He's already a veteran." The former La Salle standout is already 24 and played extensively overseas with Smart Gilas over the past two years.
There are some who felt Lee was actually the best available talent in the draft, but according to his former college coach, Rain or Shine is the perfect situation for him. "I've been thinking all along that Rain or Shine is the best destination for Paul, and as fate would have it, that's where he went," was the SMS of ex-UE coach Lawrence Chongson, who also serves as adviser to both Lee and Ken Acibar.
The big news came with the third pick, which previously belonged to Barako Bull, going to newly-crowned Governors Cup champion Petron Blaze in a blockbuster trade consummated just hours before the draft. The Blaze Boosters nabbed Smart Gilas stalwart Chris Lutz, adding a very promising rookie to an already loaded roster. Lutz is projected to play the two and three spots for coach Ato Agustin.
Smart Gilas players comprised six of the first seven picks, with Marcio Lassiter (fourth — Powerade), Mark Barroca (fifth — Shopinas), Mac Baracael (sixth — Alaska), and Jason Ballesteros (seventh — Meralco) joining Casio and Lutz in the top seven. Originally without a pick, the Bolts wheeled and dealed to land the seventh pick, which was originally Talk 'N Text's.
The first big surprise of the draft was at pick no. 8, which Barako Bull used on D-League MVP Allein Maliksi. Although Maliksi is no slouch and has a good chance to have a productive PBA career, many were expecting the Energy Boosters to go with Maliksi's former college teammate, and the only remaining Gilas boy on the board, Dylan Ababou. Maliksi was actually Ababou's chief reliever when both were still with UST, and didn't really put up solid numbers during his brief stint there, but his D-League performance coupled with a strong showing in the rookie camp may have helped improve his draft position.
Two picks later, though, Barako Bull closed out the first round by getting Ababou, so in the end it probably didn't matter who went first. In between the two Barako Bull picks, Barangay Ginebra shored up its depleted frontline by drafting bullstrong Reil Cervantes of FEU.
The sleeper in draft was Julius Pasculado, who seemingly came out of nowhere and climbed up the draft with a good showing in the rookie camp. The Cebu native, a dead-eye shooter who topped the three-point shooting drills of the rookie camp, was selected 14th overall by Alaska. Pasculado played varsity ball for Wilbur Wright College in Chicago, and not much was known about him until he started torching the hoops in the rookie scrimmages.
If Maliksi made the biggest leap, then Acibar had perhaps the biggest tumble. The athletic big man was thought to be a high second-round pick, but instead fell all the way to 19th,landing in the laps of the Energy Boosters. B-Meg, picking 16th, opted to pass on Acibar and went with Brian Ilad instead. Nothing against Ilad, but the after seeing both players in the UAAP and D-League, Acibar seems to have the bigger upside. He may turn out to be the steal of the draft, and Barako Bull was lucky to still get him that late in the second round.
All in all, it appears Alaska and Powerade were the big winners. Aside from Baracael and Pasculado, the Aces also picked Eric Salamat and Ariel Mepana. Salamat, the former Ateneo standout, and Mepana, who played for Alaska assistant coach Luigi Trillo in the D-League, are both quality picks who can be good role players off the bench.
The Tigers, who have no elite talents outside of Gary David, will surely be more competitive now that they have a stabilizer in the backcourt in Casio and an all-around forward in Lassiter. Powerade also picked Marc Agustin with the 21st and last pick in the second round, but it remains to be seen if Ato's son can crack the roster.
Newcomer Shopinas also did pretty well, drafting a steady point guard in Barroca and a tall center with a good shooting touch in Magi Sison (11th overall). The tallest player in the draft at nearly six-seven, Sison may not be a banger but is a good rebounder and shotblocker who can hit it from mid-range.
Perhaps the most baffling pick was James Martinez going to Barangay Ginebra at 18th. With Acibar still available, the Gin Kings opted to pick another point guard. Right now, it's not clear how Martinez will fit into an already crowded point guard rotation that includes Mike Cortez, Jayjay Helterbrand and Rob Labagala, unless the former UE guard is turned into a very small shooting guard.
The next few days will determine who will eventually be signed up, and who will be left unprotected. Although being a first-rounder is no guarantee of being offered a contract (see Pari Llagas and James Sena), it's safe to say that all of this year's first-round picks, plus maybe six or seven second-rounders, will find their way into their team's rosters for the All-Filipino Conference set to open on October 2.
