BARANGAY Ginebra coach Tim Cone said the play of Sonny Estil and Mario Barasi during the PBA Draft Combine convinced them to select the two unheralded players.
The Gin Kings went with Estil at No. 11 and Barasi at No. 13 in the Season 50 draft after a closer look at the two during the draft combine tournament.
Estil and Barasi played with the Barangay Ginebra squad that won the championship in the draft combine mini-tournament. Estil captured the MVP and Barasi was a member of the Mythical Five, and it was at that point where the Gin Kings began to be interested.
Cone was in the United States during the draft combine, leaving his coaching staff to observe the proceedings, and relying on the videos that was sent to him.
“We weren’t thinking about our draft pick at all,” said Cone. “He (Estil) wasn’t even in our radar until we saw him in the combine."
“It was funny because my son proposed to his girlfriend in the States so I went back to the States for the ceremony. And so they were sending me videos. So I was watching our videos and the games of the combine, and I really liked this kid that was playing,” he added.
READ: Sonny Estil in disbelief after being picked at No. 11 by Ginebra
The kid Cone was referring to was Estil, a virtual unknown whose last collegiate stint was with Letran in the preseason a few months back, and is currently playing for the Pampanga Giant Lanterns.
“Then, when I flew back here, I arrived in the morning and I looked up in the news and I found out that he won the MVP. So at that point, we thought, maybe we can’t get him anymore. Someone might pick him early because he won the MVP, got the attention,” he added.
The good thing for Barangay Ginebra was that the 6-foot-3 Estil was still available at No. 11.
“We just think he’s a kid that has a lot of potential. He’s athletic. He runs the floor well. He gets to the basket well. He’s got good size for his position which is important,” Estil said.
Cone hopes that the pick would pan out the way they thought it would.
“So it’s a great story. Guy coming from nowhere and then end up being a first round pick. I hope he ends up with a happy ending. I hope he earns a spot and he becomes a really good player for us. That would be a great ending to a great story,” Cone said.
Barasi makes impact as well
As for the 6-foot-7 Barasi, Cone said he was impressed with the way he played the pick-and-roll which is an integral part of Barangay Ginebra’s game.
“We liked him in the pick and roll situation,” said Cone of Barasi, who played for Adamson in the UAAP and Basilan in the MPBL. “The way he gets down and seals around the basket off the pick and rolls.
“We had a couple other big men in mind. We felt that the other big man might have been a better post-up player. But we really liked the way he screened and rolled. And so, certain things he did, it kind of impressed us and felt we could work with and develop.”
“He was really the first outside of Geo (Chiu). He’s really the first big man off the board. And so, luckily on that 13th pick, we had our choice of big man and we went with him,” said Cone.
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