MBT continues UAAP buildup in pre-season tourneys
Date Posted: July 16, 2024 at 01:38 PM
Soaring Falcons alumni Jerom Lastimosa and Didat Hanapi are on the way to the pros after being selected in the 49th Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Rookie Draft held at the Glorietta Activity Center in Makati on July 14.
Lastimosa, despite coming off from an ACL injury, was the Magnolia Chicken Timplados Hotshots' 9th overall pick, reuniting him with fellow former King Falcon Jerrick Ahanmisi.
Ahanmisi and Lastimosa were teammates in the Falcons’ Nest during UAAP 81 when the second-seeded San Marcelino crew, then led by Sean Manganti, Simon Camacho, and Jerie Pingoy, succumbed to the University of the Philippines in the Final Four.
With the Hotshots, the Dumaguete native will be under the tutelage of champion coach Chito VIctolero, as well as veterans Mark Barroca and Paul Lee.
Hanapi, meanwhile, was drafted 17th overall by Barangay Ginebra San Miguel, although succeeding reports revealed that the draft rights for the former Adamson wingman would be traded to the Terrafirma Dyip.
The Zamboanga City native still had playing years in the UAAP but elected to turn pro, playing for the Manila Batang Sampaloc in the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League before applying to turn pro with the first pay-for-play league in Asia.
