DeVance looms as top PBA draft pick

Joe DeVance is expected to be one of the prized picks in the 2007 PBA Rookie Draft this Sunday after the Fil-Am player completed his eligibility papers within the extension period granted him by the league.

DeVance has been seeing action at the ongoing PBA Rookie Camp at the Moro Lorenzo Sports Center inside Ateneo with University of Texas at El Paso making 12 points and seven rebounds in a 52-63 loss by Red team to Blue squad in the opening game of the Accel-sponsored camp.

With his inclusion in the draft pool, the 6-foot-7 Toyota-Balintawak slotman now looms among the prospective top picks in the draft exercise slated Sunday at the Market! Market! in Taguig.

DeVance, born in Honolulu, Hawaii on March 12, 1982, is among the players Welcoat is considering to pick No. 1 overall.

Next to pick in the round after Welcoat is San Miguel Beer, then Sta. Lucia Realty, Coca-Cola, Air21, Alaska, again Alaska, Air21, San Miguel and Coca-Cola.

It’s Air21, Welcoat, Sta.Lucia, Air21, Purefoods, Alaska, Red Bull, Talk n Text, Red Bull and Ginebra in the second round.

Other leading aspirants in the 47-man pool are Ken Bono, Samigue Eman, JC Intal, Ryan Reyes, Doug Kramer and Yousif Aljamal.

DeVance applied for the draft last year but didn’t make it as he failed to complete the required documents.

He nearly missed the draft again this year with his papers coming out only last week. He was given an original deadline of July 31 to file his documents but he made an appeal approved by the board.

Meanwhile, Yancy de Ocampo re-signed with Talk n Text Monday for a two-year contract worth nearly P5 million.

Mike Holper was also to sign a two-year contract extension with Barangay Ginebra yesterday. – Nelson Beltran