2019 PBA Mock Draft: A Deep Draft!

(c) PBA Media Bureau

Now that the 2018 PBA draft is on the books, we can now talk about the 2019 draft!

This is the great thing about drafts, it never ends! It is the only doorway for the amateur players to enter the PBA.

And for 2019, the hype is starting to grow for the class.

So, who are our initial 12 draftees? Let us see.

For this mock draft, we will use the same 2018 draft order.

#1 Columbian - Joshua Munzon
Last September, Munzon revealed his plan to finally join the PBA in 2019. That could be the reason why he is not currently playing on ABL.

With what he did in the ABL, he can easily become the headliner of this draft. He averaged 24.5 points, 7.8 rebounds and 4.6 assists in the 2018 ABL season.

#2 Blackwater - Justine Baltazar
It was shocking to me that Baltazar did not get enough love from the national media in the recent UAAP season. He basically legitimized himself as one of the next great bigs of Philippine basketball. He produced 13.4 points, 9.6 rebounds, 2.1 blocks and 1.3 assists per game.

#3 Northport - Thirdy Ravena
There is a big chance that Ravena will end up as the headliner of this draft if he can sustain his 2018 UAAP Finals production in the upcoming 2019 season. That is hard to fathom though because Ateneo's core remains the same so the system may not change at all. 

In short, it will not focus on Ravena to do a lot of things until the playoffs.

#4 Alaska (From Phoenix) - Isaac Go
This is the dream draft of Alaska. If Phoenix will remain as a top 6 pick, they can be assured of a genuine center. In terms of fit, especially with their culture, Go could be their dream pick. He is level-headed and intelligent inside and outside the court.

#5 Meralco - Troy Rike
He was underwhelming in his lone UAAP season but he will have a whole year to push his name up to this position. I also believe that the performance of Rike was affected by a lot of outside factors. Thus, I expect him to rise this year, either in the D-League or national team.

#6 TNT - Santi Santillan
The performance of Santillan in the 2018 season of UAAP legitimized himself as first round prospect for this draft. He is not as tall as the bigs above, but in terms of skills, he may have the most.

#7 NLEX - Alvin Pasaol
I really believe that coach Yeng will love the passion and grit of Pasaol. It will also help that he has a resemblance to one of coach Yeng's former top scorer, Nelson Asaytono.

#8 Rain or Shine - Owen Graham
I was really hoping Graham will be part of the 2018 draft because I love what I saw in him in his stint in the PBA D-League. Unfortunately, he did not. Graham's hustle, athleticism and length are his main selling points.

#9 Alaska - Larry Muyang
Yes. There is a real chance that Alaska will grab not one but two centers in the upcoming PBA draft. Muyang played first in DLSU but transferred to Letran. After an impressive 2018 NCAA season performance and the graduation of Bong Quinto, Muyang is in-line to be the main man of the 2019 Letran Knights.

#10 Magnolia - Arvin Tolentino
Arvin should have joined the 2018 draft. I am pretty sure he may have ended up as a top 8 pick. In this draft, Tolentino has a chance to fall in the 2nd round with the number of quality bigs in the pool. 

Although, he showed enough skill that Magnolia can even consider playing him at the wings. 

#11 Columbian (From San Miguel) - Christian Fajarito
Fajarito, from College of St. Benilde, joined Muyang in his transfer to Letran Knights. Fajarito did not have a superb season like Muyang but his size was really felt by their opponents. 

#12 Ginebra - Sean Manganti
One forward that may fall due to the high number of centers and bigs in this draft is Sean Manganti. Manganti just ended his UAAP career with a playoff appearance with the Adamson Falcons. He has the clutch-gene that is hard to find in the basketball universe.