Record total of 65 hopefuls selected in PBA Rookie Draft bworldonline.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from bworldonline.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Published March 14, 2021, 10:57 AM
Fellow colleagues, fans and observers have been spending the past few weeks doing their own mock version of the PBA Rookie Draft to figure out where the best players from the list of 86 applicants are going to end up with.
With the draft proceedings slated Sunday, March 14, 2021, this writer opted to join the bandwagon to figure out if teams prefer to take the best talent available or go for a player that can fill what the team needs.
The following are predictions for the first round, and it appears that the first three, four or five picks are a mere formality, with some of the rest likely could be different by the time the real draft takes place.
Mar 14, 2021
EVE of the 2020 PBA Rookie Draft. All mock drafts have been put out. Suddenly Terrafirma coach Johnedel Cardel came out with an ambiguous statement that basically says that contrary to popular belief, the Dyip aren t completely settled on making Joshua Munzon the No. 1 overall pick on Sunday.
Just like that, all the mock drafts came in danger of being thrown out the window as the pieces begin to crumble from the top down.
The doubt has been cast. And it s not without basis. Did the pre-draft noise around Fil-Am guard Mikey Williams - or TnT s late move to get the No. 4 pick from sister team NLEX -change the mind of whoever makes the decisions for Terrafirma?
Published March 13, 2021, 5:21 PM
Photo from FIBA
NLEX coach Yeng Guiao admitted that the decision to send the No. 4 pick in the PBA Rookie Draft to TNT through a three-team trade was something beyond his control.
“We have discussed thoroughly the recently concluded trade between Blackwater, TNT and NLEX within the organization, and I have strongly indicated my position on the matter,” Guiao said in a statement released by the team Saturday, March 13.
“Unfortunately, I do not make the final decisions. I remain a good soldier and team player,” added Guiao. “We will move forward from this trade with a positive outlook and focus on our preparation to put together a competitive team for this coming season.”
Published March 13, 2021, 3:46 PM
Photo from Chooks to Go
Terrafirma is all set to welcome Joshua Munzon as its No. 1 overall pick on Sunday, March 14, when the PBA holds this year’s Rookie Draft virtually for the first time.
Barring a last-minute change of draft, the Dyip plans to select Munzon to kickoff the 4 p.m. proceedings which will see teams make selections from a list of 86 applicants.
Munzon is considered as the consensus top selection in this year’s draft after a splendid career in the ASEAN Basketball League, PBA D-League and Chooks-to-Go Pilipinas 3×3.
The 26-year-old from California should be a fitting replacement to CJ Perez, who Terrafirma decided to part ways with by trading him to San Miguel Beer in late-January.