2019 PBA Draft Reactions

The first, first pick? err
(Photo: spin.ph)

Author's note: in the interest of providing all parties concerned with their fair share of exposure and digital space, we are splitting our 2019 PBA Draft reactions: one for the actual draft and another for the special Gilas selection. We have our reservations for sure, on how the whole thing played out, but let's stick to the positives first and celebrate the draftees-- specially the 1st round picks which we will discuss here and how they fit into their respective teams.

This 2019 PBA Draft, 45 of the 67 hopefuls were selected (including the Gilas) in what could easily be coined as one of the more "quiet-er" Drafts. There was a clear lack of household, superstar college names, but what this Draft lacked in starpower it made up for with well-rounded talent that went up to the 3rd and 4th rounds. It also wouldn't be much of a surprise if the first rounders (and a few second ones) soon start making waves in the pros despite going under-the-radar.

Also, how's this for another sample for the "Junemar Effect:" 8 of the 12 1st round picks are all frontliners (SF/PF/C). Pretty obvious that teams are going for size moving forward.

1. Columbian - Roosevelt Adams, SG
Glad to see this one working out from our Mock Draft. It's going to be nice to see just how good Adams is, as we've seen flashes during his stint with Go-for-Gold and Mighty Sports. At 6"5, he's already bigger than most of the competition at SF, and with his range, would be a great running buddy to incoming star sophomore CJ Perez.
Draft day grade: A

2. Blackwater - Maurice Shaw, C
If our boy James Velasquez doesn't step up the first time he covers a BW game with Shaw in tow and calls him "The Big Shaw" (akin to the WWE star), we'd be very disappointed. Shaw is a grizzled veteran big man who has been putting up great numbers versus East Asian competition, but he's also been injured here and there and is already at 34-35 years of age. Silver lining is, he's going to allow BW to go REALLY big with him at center, Mac Belo at 3 and Carl Bryan Cruz at 4.
Draft day grade: A


3. NLEX - Mike Ayonayon, PG
While we didn't really have Ayonayon high up on this list, the pick is trademark Guiao-- a relatively unknown player who plays with a lot of spunk and heart. Only, Ayonayon is arguably one of the better scorers in the Draft after Rey Suerte and Allyn Bulanadi who were recruited into the Gilas pool. The former MPBL Finals MVP is going to have his work cut out for him however, as he'll need to dislodge anyone from: Kiefer Ravena, Kevin Alas, Philip Paniamogan, Larry Fonacier, Cyrus Baguio, Eman Monfort (injured) and whoever. That's a boat load of A-list guards to go up against.
Draft day grade: B

4. Alaska - Barkley Ebona, PF
Looks like Coach Jeffrey Cariaso is bent on building an athletic, tall and mobile Aces team with the entry of 6"5 big man Ebona who is just as rugged as former Ace Carl Bryan Cruz, minus the penchant for veering away from the paint.
Draft day grade: B

5. Rain or Shine - Adrian Wong, PG
Personally, we love Wong's game and felt that he was the 'odd man out' in Ateneo's structured offense. Almost like he sacrificed his offense for the better good of the team (which obviously worked). At RoS, he'll get an opportunity to show his wares as a slasher and hopefully form a formidable backcourt rotation with resident stars Rey Nambatac and Ed Daquiaog.
Draft day grade: B

6. Rain or Shine - Clint Doliguez, SF
While the Wong pick was unsurprising, Doliguez coming in right after him was a bit of a head-scratcher. RoS' now appears to have one too many young guards all with a knack for scoring, and if you're moving him to his natural position, there's his senior Javee Mocon (and vet Gabe Norwood).
Draft day grade: B

7. Rain or Shine - Prince Rivero, PF
He'll have to learn to play the wing post moving forward, as Rivero is a bit too small for a PBA power forward. Still, this is another great opportunity for him to learn from another heavyweight-- Beau Belga, while the RoS system also allows all of its players to shine given their ever-changing rotation and minutes. Skills-wise, he can learn a lot from veteran Mark Borboran.
Draft day grade: B

8. Northport - Sean Manganti, SF
We had Manganti going higher, like, Alaska higher, but that obviously didn't push through. The next shocker of course, was why RoS didn't bring this wiry small forward in, who has great size, good handles and decent range to be Gabe Norwood's protege. Well, we'll probably never know but it's good to see him going to Northport where he can learn behind Kevin Ferrer and Sean Anthony.
Draft day grade: B

9. Magnolia - Aris Dionisio, PF
Again, another surprise pick. Dionisio is a great defender (Arwind Santos-ish, minus the 3-point jacking/ shooting) who can be groomed into Marc Pingris' successor as the Hotshots' defensive lynchpin. Under-rated, needs to work on his shooting and handles, and a little weight won't hurt his stock.
Draft day grade: A

10. Ginebra - Arvin Tolentino, PF 
We love Arvin and expected much of him. He has the range, he makes jumpshots look so effortless. But well, we haven't see him with that fire or hustle that you'd want from young stars looking to make a name for themselves-- something that was supposedly what he or his camp wanted to do when they left Ateneo for FEU. But he kind of sleepwalked at FEU. Then in the MPBL. And well, hope his PBA run is better. Ceiling's Kerby Raymundo-lite. Right now, he's Mark Borboran. The PBA version not the UE one.
Draft day grade: B

11. TNT - Kib Montalbo, PG
The MVP camp can't seem to keep itself from picking DLSU guards huh? A decade or so ago, they had Ren Ren Ritualo and Mac Cardona. In 2020, they'll be having Almond Vosotros and Kib Montalbo (okay, the comparison was pretty bad, with only the DLSU thing as common ground since the first two were legitimate stars while the latter are, well, uh). Montalbo would be a great addition to an otherwise thin TNT point guard rotation.
Draft day grade: B

12. Columbian - Christian Balagasay, C
They need warm bodies, and Balagasay is one of the more battle-ready ones. Imagine if they held on to... and paired him with... and.... sigh.
Draft day grade: B

Special mentions: Aaron Black will be a sleeper contributor for Meralco, great running buddy/ sub for Chris Newsome. Hoping that Renzo Subido is able to make a name for himself in the pros, it's not like Northport has anyone bigger at the moment playing point (Sol Mercado's somehow glued to the bench) so that leaves them with Nico Elorde. Valandre Chauca is also a sleeper, we're not surprised that he wasn't picked earlier though. A bit of an unknown, played for Adamson, impressed here and there but not enough. Which is big considering Franz Pumaren loves big guards so he should've been able to showcase something.

Your thoughts? @kilikilishot on Twitter

2019 PBA Mock Draft Version 1.0

Go number 1?
(Photo credit: ABS CBN Sports)

Mark your calendars as we are all set to welcome some new blood into the Philippine Basketball Association by way of the 2019 PBA Draft this Sunday, December 8.

Though it's rather unfortunate that some favorites and household names have already opted to skip this year's affair for one reason or another, this is a great opportunity for those who have decided to take a leap of faith to show just how good they are. In the previous years, we've seen a lot of NCAA standouts being picked in the 1st round over the more 'mainstream' UAAP hopefuls. Just this season, we were treated to the brilliance of Columbian' CJ Perez, the 1st overall pick, and Northport's Robert Bolick.

As per my previous Mock Drafts in the old blog: kilikilishot.blogspot.com ; we're going with who we feel each team needs and who's the best available.

Let's go!

1 Columbian - Roosevelt Adams, G/F
While the media continues to push Go down our throats, don't be surprised if this 6"5 Fil-Am ends up going 1st overall seemingly out of nowhere. Honestly, I've seen him play enough to be convinced that he has great potential-- he can knock down 3s, he rebounds, he doesn't force the issue and at 6"5 could easily be a match-up nightmare right away vs most of the PBA wings. Pairing Adams with Perez would be great on paper, with one guy slashing to the basket and the other knocking down 3s.

2 Blackwater - Isaac Go, C 
The Ateneo big man has been making waves as the potential top pick this year, but we feel like he'll slide down 1 spot to the more versatile Adams. Which isn't all that bad considering the guy's never been a career 10-10 machine. At best, he put up 9 points and 5 boards en route to a PBA D League MVP trophy. Still, the silver lining here is that you've got a kid who is coachable, has a soft touch and looks like he's willing to be great and just play his role. Also, 6"8 is 6"8 in a league currently being dominated by the 5x PBA MVP, 6"10 Junemar Fajardo.



3 NLEX - Rey Suerte, SG
Before he suited up for UE in the UAAP, Suerte was already making waves as a 2x CESAFI MVP. That alone should tell you that yes, this guy is good. Imagine him running with Kiefer Ravena and Jericho Cruz, as Kevin Alas continues to work his way into form and you're looking at a very dangerous NLEX backcourt.

4 Alaska - Sean Manganti, SF
Because you know, this Manganti kid and Alaska just goes together. Solid wing who can make shots, move the ball and play defense. At 6"5 he can play the 3 while Ahanmisi and Teng take care of the backcourt. All of a sudden, the Aces will be bigger at positions 1-3.

5 Rain or Shine - Jerrick Balanza, SG/ SF
What a feel good story which we feel has prepared Balanza mentally for the tough PBA grind ahead. He's a tough-as-nails, old school scorer who can get the job done on both ends of the floor with a lot of grit. Playing behind Kuya Rey Nambatac and Javee Mocon will also help in Balanza's development.

6 Rain or Shine - Aaron Black, SG
Just a hunch here, but we feel that RoS might take a gamble on Black who has shown flashes here and there. Sure, he's no Chris Newsome, but RoS management, specially Coach Caloy Garcia, has always had a penchant for players who look and play a certain way-- Sol Mercado, Mav Ahanmisi. Could very well be a sleeper and sound contributor to the RoS system.

7 Meralco - Arvin Tolentino, PF 
Prodigal son. Tolentino is too talented not to be a first round pick, and we feel that he's matured enough after his Ateneo exit while playing for FEU and in the MPBL. Yes, from time to time, you do feel like he's playing like one of those 'rich boys' who don't want to get hurt, don't want to get into scuffles and absolutely won't dive for any loose balls. But then you see him making a suave move that leads to a nice jumper and say 'hey, this kid is pretty good.' This kid reminds me a lot of Mark Borboran, only chubbier and not as hustle-ish. Wait. Yeah, Borboran.

8 Northport - Bonbon Batiller, SG
Keeping it all in the family, but this time, addressing an obvious need in terms of firepower while Bolick recovers from injury. His familiarity with Coach Pido (by way of Coach/ Manager Bonnie Tan) will give him a boost of confidence, specially on a 'hungry' team like NP that doesn't seem to mind who scores the basket as long as everything runs through Christian Standhardinger first, everyone else, second.

9 Magnolia - Richard Escoto, PF/C

This team needs all the big men that they can get. Stat. Escoto fits the bill and has enough experience, so should be an easy fit right away. For now, it's Escoto or some one else who's over 6"4. It just doesn't make any sense if they go for a guard at this point.

10 Ginebra - Matt Nieto, PG 
Call it a hunch but we feel that the search for L.A. Tenorio's heir apparent (provided Scottie Thompson continues to play the 2-3 spot opposite Stanley Pringle) is going to be addressed next year through ADMU point man Nieto. At 6"0, Nieto has the size and speed to keep up with most PBA point guards while also being capable enough to run plays (hell, he spent majority of his collegiate career running plays for Tab Baldwin). But what's a bit under-the-radar about Nieto, which I've seen in flashes, is his ability to make clutch shots which should be a welcome, 'low key' addition to Ginebra.

11 TNT - Allyn Bulanadi, SG
A floor-spacing lefty that would fit in nicely to TNT's high-octane, European-style offense. He has good PBA size for a 2-guard and should be a threat on the floor when left open (mostly when guys go and chase after Jayson Castro and Roger Pogoy). His defense may need a bit of work, yes, but if it's just about getting buckets, Bulanadi's arguably Top 3 in this list.

12 San Miguel - Kib Montalbo, PG
Remember when Kib was that skinny superstar youth coming out of Bacolod? He's come a long way since the, winning a championship in college before opting to play in the MPBL to help polish his game. Montalbo quietly made a name for himself through his defense, and it should be nice learning the ropes from Chris Ross.

Your thoughts? @kilikilishot on Twitter !

Genesis

Here we go
(Photo: ABS CBN News)

In 2015, Bobby Ray Parks, Jr. had a choice to make: prepare for the PBA Draft, which has been nothing short of a birth right given his rich pedigree and building accomplishments, or try for the NBA Draft and see how far his basketball skills were to take him.

He chose the latter, though he went undrafted and hardly made an impact in the Development Leagues. It took him four years of playing for Alab Pilipinas in the ASEAN Basketball League (where he is the reigning back-to-back-to-back ABL Local MVP) and some for Gilas Pilipinas, before he finally opted to apply for the PBA Draft wherein he was selected 2nd overall- something that probably had more to do with off-court politics than actual basketball skill.

Because let's all be honest about it, Parks, Jr. is the most polished basketball player we have ever seen since Willie Miller and Zandro Limpot, Jr.

Name a basketball move, be it for a guard or big, and Parks, Jr. probably has it nailed all the way down to the fundamentals.



We've been hard on Parks, Jr. on our old blog and on Twitter (where he blocked us following that disappointing NU-UST series), but it was never about because he was making incorrect plays on the court. It was more like, we expected more. Because of the skillset. Because of the proven track record.

The knock on Parks, Jr. is that he doesn't play with fire. With intensity. We see flashes, but in a full 48-minute game, you see him going through the motions. But with so much ease that you'd be wanting for more. The shots are effortless. Getting into scoring position for him is easy-picking. The only time we've ever seen him being locked up, is that NU-UST playoffs wherein Kevin Ferrer was blatantly holding on to his wrists Tyron Lue-Allen Iverson style (that the refs were not calling, and from what we can remember he injured that same wrist, which ultimately led to a subpar game for his standards).

Our knock on Parks, Jr., going into the NBA Draft, is that he didn't have any advantage going in. Versus Filipino competition-- slower, smaller, he was an A+, versus guys who were about the same size but more explosive than he was, well, there's a reason why he couldn't crack a starting spot in the D-League. He was a tweener. He has the smarts to run point, but not the range, speed or strength. He's not a natural explosive scorer, not a catch-and-shoot guy, so you couldn't put him at the 2. He plays more like a natural 3, and vs international competition where 3 guys are anywhere from 6"6 to 6"9, he's just a bit too short/ not as strong.

We said that he needed to zero in on a skill, and hard. Scoring? Passing? Running? Something. To an elite level. Just enough to get noticed.

But on the Asian front-- let's not lie to ourselves. In South East Asia? Parks, Jr. is better than 90% of the field. You have seen some of the best Asian-Americans/ Foreigners and how they were tasked to match up with Parks, Jr. and the Filipino made them all look like fools on the court.

Now with the Blackwater Elite, we are starting to see an even more polished game from Parks, Jr. Though a rookie, he is arguably the most battle-tested among his peers. The way he handles himself in games, the way he plays and 'controls' the match-- had he been playing since the Philippine Cup he'd probably be a lock for the Rookie of the Year award as early as July already. The way he is able to make Allein Maliksi and Roi Sumang, both one-trick pony scorers, look even better on the court, and how he is able to revive the play of Mac Belo-- Parks, Jr. is an elite player for sure.

Sitting here after years of frustration over our love-hate relationship with Parks, Jr.'s basketball odyssey, we could definitely say this: "Parks, Jr. is the real deal, and he is worth the wait."

The 2018 PBA Draft [RXN]

CJ Perez to Columbian
(Image courtesy of ABS CBN Sports)

Our Mock Draft came up a bit short (read: this writer forgot to post it!) so without further adieu, here's our reaction piece on yesterday's PBA Draft:

1. Columbian – CJ Perez, PG, 6”1 
What we love about Perez’ game is that he was not satisfied by being tagged as the “Baby Beast”—a tribute given his game’s (and background’s) similarity to Phoenix’s Calvin Abueva. No, he went from being that energy guy who can do it all a.k.a. ‘rebound ko, baba ko’ and transformed himself to 1) a slasher and scorer with a legitimate perimeter jumpshot and 2) a point guard who can make great reads and passes that are not a byproduct of the offense (like a dribble drive that makes lead combo guards look monstrous when in all, they’re simply kicking out the ball to guys who are locked into certain areas on the floor and not moving at all). While he may not be the best talent available in this year’s Draft, not a lot of fans would argue against his selection. Columbian would be complete and utter fools if they do not hand him the keys outright.

2. Blackwater – Bobby Ray Parks, Jr., SF, 6”3 
The best available talent in this year’s draft. He has the size. He has the handles. He has the range. He has the experience. Bobby Ray Parks, Jr. was born to be in the PBA. At 25, he’s already reaching his prime as a basketball player. Parks, Jr. has been so good, that the only flaw we could really point out is how sometimes, we feel like he could do more- when in reality, the numbers that he puts up on a daily basis wherever he plays, are good enough to win league MVP today. Sure, we want him to be more aggressive. Sure, we wish he’d put in more time in the gym and lose some baby fat. But make no mistake about it, you’d be very hard-pressed to find guys who are better than Parks, Jr. at the 2-3 spots in the PBA. We also appreciate how he’s played off the ball for Alab Pilipinas under Jimmy Alapag, if only to teach him other ways to be effective (he played off it for the most part last year but still won ABL Local MVP). Unfortunately, we’d have to wait until the 2nd/ 3rd conference to see his true worth.

3. NorthPort – Robert Bolick, SG, 6”1 
Bolick, if are to believe the NorthPort camp, is a Terrence Romeo replacement minus the long hair, flash and excessive ball-handling. He can definitely log in some minutes at the point, though his handles may not be as good versus a Chris Ross or Jayson Castro. What you like about Bolick is that he’s ready to score and willing to do anything to win, he can play off the ball while still being effective—which is what NorthPort really needs since we expect star guard Stanley Pringle to dominate the offense. A bit of an overlap with Jonathan Gray in terms of what they bring to the table, and maybe a concern defensively should the pair play alongside Pringle.