IT’S a matter of foresight as far as the Manny V. Pangilinan group is concerned.
With an eye on tapping Ateneo star Kiefer Ravena come the 2016 PBA Rookie Draft, the MVP group, sources said, is already looking to land at least in the top three of the draft order two years from now.
MVP-owned teams Talk 'N Text, Meralco, and NLEX hold five first-round picks in the 2015 draft but - at last count - only have one in 2016 when Ravena is expected to come out after playing out his eiligility with the Blue Eagles.
If it wants to land Ravena, the group must make the move as early as now.
Two likely targets are new PBA franchises Blackwater and KIA Motors, which, unless they come up with spectacular offseason moves, are again likely to end up with top draft picks in their hands next year.
Blackwater has already given up its 2015 first-round pick in a previous trade to Talk 'N Text, but there are no indications that it is willing to give up another prized draft selection to the MVP group.
And KIA?
Carnival team manager Eric Pineda stressed to Spin.ph they have no plan to trade the team's 2015 first-round pick, more so their draft rights next year. But he admitted there are a lot of trade offers on the table.
“No, we are not yet ready to part ways with it. Marami kaming suitors, maraming interested. Halos lahat naman ng teams eh. Pero sa ngayon, wala pa kaming nakikitang gusto namin ipalit (sa 2015 pick),” said Pineda.
[See MVP prefers to see Ravena stay at Ateneo, even if it means losing him in PBA draft]
Unless it makes a move, chances are dim the MVP group will have a shot at getting not only Ravena but other amateur stars projected to come out in 2016 like Arnold Van Opstal, Kevin Ferrer, Cris Tolomia, and Baser Amer.
The group, as it stands now, only has a grand total of one first-round pick in 2016. Worse, the NLEX pick came from Talk 'N Text, meaning it will likely be well down in the order unless thw Texters suddenly turn into a mediocre team.
Here is the list of teams holding first-round picks in 2016:
1. NLEX (from Talk 'N Text)
2. Blackwater
3. Kia
4. San Miguel (from NLEX)
5. GlobalPort (from Meralco)
6. Rain or Shine
7. Ginebra
8. Star Hotshots
9. Barako
10. Barako (from San Miguel)
11. Alaska
12. Star (from GlobalPort)
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