EVEN new Blackwater coach Nash Racela admits that his side rolled the dice with the selection of Fil-Am bruiser Maurice Shaw in the first round of the 2019 PBA Rookie Draft on Sunday.
"It's a good gamble, yung first round pick namin kay Maurice Shaw," he said. "We took a gamble in getting him, 34 years old, but it all depends on how he'll play."
"Life is a gamble, so you have to take your chances. It's not often that you see a 6-foot-8 guy entering the draft. We feel that if he gets in the right condition, he could make big contributions sa Blackwater."
The Elite pulled the first out of many surprises in the most unpredictable annual rookie selection proceedings the league has ever seen when they pulled Shaw out of left field and took him second in the regular draft.
Racela, however, said that the coaches have had their eyes on Shaw since he first showed up in the Draft Combine.
"Yes, he was in big consideration for us," he said. "We think if we get a small guy or a guard in the first round, it doesn't change much yung composition ng team."
Shaw, meanwhile, understands the bet Blackwater placed on him and he's ready to make Racela's move look like a stroke of genius.
"I'm really blessed and amazed that I went so high," he said. "I'm glad that they accepted me like their own now, and I'm happy for my family here that they now have somebody to look forward to."
Though Shaw may already be 34 -- easily making him one of the oldest players in the young Elite roster -- he sees it as a good move with him playing the role of the veteran despite him only set to play his first season in the league.
"It feels good. They got an older veteran and I got young stars. Hopefully, we can come together and do great things for Blackwater," he said.
"I already know pretty much what they want from me, and that's to be aggressive, be a veteran, and go out and be a monster out there."
One question, however, only needs to be asked: will the PBA see shades of Shaw's old Harlem Globetrotter moves?
Well, he doesn't think so.
"I'm too old for that now," he said chuckling before hinting on a consolation. "Maybe, I'll try to get some dunks."
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