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FILE – Alvin Pasaol was a force to be reckoned with during his UAAP days as the leading man for the EU Red Warriors. Photo by Tristan Tamayo / INQUIRER.net
MANILA, Philippines – A slew of big men dominated the first round of the 2021 PBA Rookie Draft with six of the picks outside the top three, all playing the traditional pole position.
However, it was a point guard who led the rest of the round with TNT selecting Mikey Williams as the fourth overall pick.
Williams, who is 6-foot-1, was already expected to go to the Tropang Giga and that prediction finally came true with the Cal State Fullerton product learning from the likes of veteran star Jayson Castro.
The first round, which featured Joshua Munzon (Terrafirma), Jamie Malonzo (NorthPort) and Calvin Oftana (NLEX) as the top three picks, offered few surprises except that Alvin Pasaol slipped past Meralco at No. 9.
Pasaol, one of the UAAP’s best scorers during his time at Universidad del Este, could end up as one of the biggest steals in the draft.
Power forward Santi Santillan, selected fifth overall, is expected to bolster Rain or Shine’s already loaded frontcourt when he joins Beau Belga, Jewel Ponferada, Norbert Torres and Prince Rivero.
Santillán, 6-foot-5, was a UAAP champion and is also a Filipino international who represents the country in the Fiba 3 × 3 World Tours.
A trio of centers were selected from sixth to eighth with Ben Adamos, Larry Muyang and James Laput going to Alaska, Phoenix and Terrafirma, respectively.
Pasaol’s 3×3 teammate Troy Rike was also selected in the first round as the 11th overall pick from Batang Pier.
Former Adamson star Jerrick Ahanmisi will join Magnolia’s backline as the 10th overall pick and is expected to provide floor space for Paul Lee, Mark Barroca and Jio Jalalon.
Center Ken Holmqvist, who is 6-foot-8, was the last first-round pick for Barangay Geneva.
While the big men dominated the first round, the forwards and guards prominently ranked all 12 picks in the second round with Brian Enriquez going to the Gin Kings as the thirteenth overall pick.
The 6-foot-3 forward withdrew his commitment to Universidad del Este and instead jumped into the professional leagues with collegiate play halted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Then Blackwater, back-to-back in the second round, took out forwards Rey Mark Acuña and Joshua Torralba.
Philippine-Canadian winger Taylor Browne was chosen by Alaska as the fourth pick in the second round.
An intriguing prospect, Browne played for the University of British Columbia in the 2019 Jones Cup, where his team played against Mighty Sports.
Franky Johnson, MVP of Chooks to Go Pilipinas 3 × 3, was the fifth pick in the second round and is expected to make a solid impact when he joins Rain or Shine.
Phoenix had the sixth and seventh picks in the second round with the 2020 Philippines Cup surprise team taking on athletic guard Nicholas Demusis and scorer Aljun Melecio, a name that surprisingly fell so low in the draft.
A UAAP champion, Melecio was a fiery shooter for De La Salle and was already famous early in his college career when he won the Rookie of the Year award in 2016.
NLEX added depth to their wing positions when they selected Dave Murrell from the University of the Philippines for the eighth pick of the second round, while guard Alec Stockton from Far Eastern University went to Alaska as the ninth pick of the round.
Another team that had back-to-back picks in the second round was Rain or Shine with the Elasto Painters opting to take on guards Anton Asistio and 2015 UAAP Rookie of the Year Andrei Caracut.
EU product Mark Olayon was the final choice of the second round when he went to NorthPort.
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