Sizing up draft prospects

At least 30 hopefuls are expected to sign up for an intensive, three-day camp preparatory to the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) draft at Ateneo’s Moro Lorenzo gym on Dec. 12-14.

Organizer Chiqui de la Rosa, a Filipino athletic agent based in Los Angeles, says the camp will showcase the talents of players eligible for the PBA draft on Jan. 12. He’s invited coaches from the PBA and the Philippine Basketball League (PBL) to observe the proceedings which will be run by John Moran, former Indiana University coach Bobby Knight’s caddy for five years up to 1997.

"The camp will show who’s ready to play in the PBA and who’s not," says de la Rosa who used to coach the likes of Shell’s Tony de la Cruz, La Salle’s Willie Wilson, and San Miguel Beer’s Alvin Castro in Los Angeles playgrounds before they took their sneakers here. "We’ll focus on the basics–passing, dribbling, shooting. We want to know who can follow instructions, who are coachable. We’ll measure each player’s vertical leap, wingspan and flexibility just like in US camps. We’ll split the guys into groups of three or four and grade the players. This is an opportunity to find out who’s worth what in the draft."

De la Rosa, 54, is charging each hopeful a fee of P2,500 to participate. A team pays P5,000 each to get in with no limit as to how many coaches and officials to send.

Moran will supervise the camp with the help of several local coaches like Louie Alas and Manny Dandan.

"John’s perfect for this situation," continues de la Rosa. "He’s a teacher. He likes to help kids improve their skills. He doesn’t want to coach a team. He’s more comfortable working as a trainer or some kind of consultant. Basketball’s his life. He has no family back in the US except for a son who’s grown up."

De la Rosa met Moran at a pre-draft camp set up for visiting Korean coaches looking for imports in Chicago last summer. Former Talk ‘N’ Text import Todd Bernard introduced Moran to de la Rosa. They hit it off. De la Rosa then invited Moran to watch the action in a Fil-Am league in Las Vegas and later in San Jose. Moran, enamored by the Filipino’s passion for the game, went along for the ride and is now here for the long haul.

"John’s hyper and intense, just like Bobby Knight," says de la Rosa. "He can talk basketball all day. For three days in Las Vegas, we were at the gym from eight in the morning to six at night. That’s how dedicated he is to the game."

A few years ago, de la Rosa formed a sports management company in Los Angeles with other Filipinos who lived in Southern California. His partners were Greg Bichara, Mike Gonzalez, and Alaska player Don Allado’s father Loy. Initially, the group recruited Fil-Ams for varsity teams here. De la Rosa eventually went on his own and has been an agent the last two years, representing Mark Caguiao, Elmer Lago, Alex Crisano, and Reinier Sison in the PBA. He is negotiating to represent four more PBA players next season.

De la Rosa is bringing in a few prospects of his own for the coming draft. Topping his list is 5-11 guard Jimmy Alapag who was named to the national pool early this year. Alapag played in the Los Angeles Summer Pro League this year and arrives from the US on Thursday.

"Jimmy’s in excellent shape," says de la Rosa. "He’s waited two years for the chance to play in the PBA. He’s ready. He’s in the gym at six every morning. His papers are OK so no more distractions."

De la Rosa’s other finds are six-foot Gabe Pagtama, 5-11 Stanley de Castro, 6-1 Richard Harding, 6-2 Kahi Villa, 6-4 Akeli Smith and 5-10 Mark Caguco.

Pagtama, 23, played with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s son at Sta. Monica junior college and was considered among the top L.A. high school players until he stopped growing. He travels with a Philippine passport. His father is Ilocano and his mother is from Bohol.

De Castro, 23, teamed with de la Cruz at Harbor junior college and once tried out for the University of the East varsity. He is a full-blooded Filipino who traces his roots to Cavite.

Harding, 24, is from San Diego and played college football in Texas. His father is Caucasian and his mother is from Cebu. He is a certified fitness instructor.

Villa, 25, is a Hawaiian-Filipino. His uncle is Denver Nuggets assistant coach Jarrin Akana who was in Wang Fei’s Chinese team staff at the recent World Championships in Indianapolis. Villa played hoops at Brigham Young University of Hawaii, where Asi Taulava once campaigned, and major league baseball for the Toronto Blue Jays.

Smith, 25, is de la Rosa’s prized catch. "He plays like Eddie Jones," says de la Rosa, referring to the Miami Heat star. "His grandparents are Filipinos. I’m still working on his papers. I hope he’ll be cleared in time for the draft."

Caguco, 24, wasn’t eligible for the PBA draft last year because his Philippine passport had expired. Caguco’s passport has since been renewed. He played at Loyola high school in Los Angeles. Caguco and Alapag were the only Fil-Ams who saw action at the L.A. Summer Pro League this year.

Other Fil-Ams expected to join the draft include 6-1 Metropolitan Basketball Association (MBA) veteran Sunny Margate and six-foot Rob Johnson who’s now playing in the PBL.

"Sunny could be the steal of the draft," says de la Rosa. "He’s a good kid. He works hard and plays big. Rob drove all the way from Nebraska to Las Vegas to play in the Fil-Am league last summer then drove to San Francisco to play some more. I think Sunny and Rob will be good for the PBA."

The pre-draft camp should prove de la Rosa right or wrong in his assessment of the Fil-Am hopefuls.