THE surprising pick in the PBA Season 49 Draft could be Rain or Shine’s eighth selection Felix Lemetti.
Lemetti is a 6-foot-1 Fil-Swedish point guard who had stints in various colleges including NCAA Division I schools Farefield, Omaha, and Southern Utah. It was in Omaha where he started in every game for his team and averaged 10.5 points and 3.1 assists in 30 games during the 2021-22 season.
He later played in Sweden’s second-tier professional league Superettan where he ended up as the leading scorer with an average of 22.2 points to win the best guard award during the 2023-24 season while playing for Fryshuset, a Stockholm-based team.
Lemetti even played for the Swedish national team in the youth level in the 2019 FIBA U20 European Championship Division B held in Israel.
For Rain or Shine head coach Yeng Guiao, the fact that Lemetti played in an NCAA Division I school can’t be ignored.
“Sabi ko rin, dalawa ‘yung first round pick namin. Of course, Caelan (Tiongson) is a solid pick. And ‘yung No. 8 namin, our second pick in the first round, we felt we can take chances,” Guiao said.
“Puwedeng sugalan kasi lahat naman sila, nag-iisa lang pinili sa first round, kami dalawa. ‘Yung isang pick namin, we will take chances based on what we saw in practice."
Lemetti did impress during Rain or Shine’s invitation to join practice where he showed his skills on offense and leadership as a point guard.
“We felt that he had potential,” Guiao said. “Nung nakita namin siya sa practice namin, sabi namin baka puwede ito magamit sa team. True point guard. A solid point guard. He can score and at the same time, he can command ‘yung team niya. We are looking for somebody like that.”
Though recognizing that his team has several point guards, Guiao said the holdovers are also versatile enough to slide to more of a shooting guard role.
“Meron kaming mga point guards na talagang have learned ‘yung how to play our system and how to develop skills which we require in playing our system. Andrei (Caracut), Anton (Asistio), si Adrian Nocum, I think sa pagpasok ni Felix, we can move him (Nocum) to the two-spot para hindi masyadong masikip ‘yung point guard. We can still give him their playing time and their minutes,” Guiao said.
Lemetti said he was pleasantly surprised that he was picked in the first round.
“It feels great. Coming in, knowing not a lot of people knew me out here. It feels great to be acknowledged by a team,” said Lemetti, whose mother traces her roots in Mindoro.
Playing internationally will be a boost for Lemetti
While he made a great impression on the Rain or Shine coaching staff, the feeling was mutual for the 25-year-old.
“I got to work out with Rain or Shine. I like the coaches, the team, and it feels great. A blessing,” Lemetti shared.
“I wasn’t sure if they’ll be looking at me at No. 8. I was looking at a couple of mock drafts and I didn’t think they are going to pick me. But I’m happy they did. It’s a blessing and I’m excited to get to work"
The Sweden-born player said he is thrilled to play in the country where basketball has a huge following. He also believes that his experience in various levels of the sport will help him in his new career in the PBA.
“Basketball is super big out here. Coming from a country where basketball is not big, it’s a huge difference. I’m just so happy, and hopefully, I can make the best out of it,” said Lemetti.
“I played in the national team for Sweden in the youth national team. Getting that international experience, playing against those opponents, I feel like that’s going to help me in this league, playing against bigger, faster opponents."
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