First Impressions: The Rookies

The opening week of the PBA is probably the most exciting week the league has to offer. Well, that excludes the Championship series of course. But yeah, I think I've always been excited during the first week of the PBA.

One big reason for that is the rookies. I've been curious on how those new guys will adjust to the PBA after playing in the Amateurs, I know I'm not the only one who's excited but what the heck, here are my first impressions on the new breed of PBA superstars.

Magnolia Beverage Masters

Their prized 6'9 rookie Samigue Eman had a rude welcome in their game against Air 21. First shot, Blocked. A back to the basket move, Stolen. I mean, how bad could it be? But I know this guy's going to get better. He must make use of Dorian Pena's injury to get those oh so precious minutes on the Magnolia rotation. Had Five points and two blocks in 15 minutes on his debut btw.

Thanks to the deep deep Magnolia bench, Jonas Villanueva received his very first DNP on the stat sheets.

The rookie grade:I'll give Sam Eman a B- on his debut and Jonas Villanueva an INC :P

Air 21 Express

The team with the most first round picks, Air 21 never hesistated to showcase them. The Ateneo duo of JC Intal and Doug Kramer didn't have a great debut, like what those old guys say "May Niyerbos pa" but they'll get better, Marvin Cruz impressed me btw, played only 11 minutes but managed to score 7 points grab 3 rebounds and dish out 2 assists.

The rookie grade: JC Intal and Doug Kramer - C
Marvin Cruz - B+

Purefoods Chunky Hotdogs

Well, let's just say their rookies didn't have a good offensive night but what the heck, that was a respectable debut, atleast by my standards. Chico Lanete scored only 3 points but grabbed 5 rebounds and dished out 4 assists, Rob Sanz had two crucial steals and a crucial lay up at crunch time and Ardy Larong provided energy and hustle.

The rookie grade: Chico Lanete - B
Rob Sanz - B
Ardy Larong - B-

Sta.Lucia Realtors

Everybody's been talking about Ryan Reyes, but someone forgot Christian Coronel. Coronel stole the show in their first game, scoring 12 points grabbing 2 rebounds and 2 steals. Ryan Reyes and Dennis Daa's game wasn't so bad either, although I expected more from Ryan but I know he has more to offer. Ryan scored 8 points grabbed 2 rebounds and stole 3 possesions and fouled 6 times. Dennis Daa had 8 and 4

The rookie grade: Christian Coronel - A-
Ryan Reyes - B
Dennis Daa - B

Talk and Text Phonepals

With that much talent on your team, it would be hard for Yousif to get playing time. He had 5 points a rebound and an assist in 10 minutes of play

The rookie grade: Yousif Aljamal - B

Alaska Aces

I can say, The Bruise brothers 2000 impressed me last night. Playing with limited minutes, Bono and Quinahan showed that they belong in the PBA. Quinahan had 10 points 5 rebounds and 2 blocks on 22 minutes of play while Ken Bono had 7 points on the same number of minutes

The rookie grade: JR Quinahan - A
Ken Bono - B

Coca Cola Tigers

Ronjay Buenafe is the most impressive rookie this year by now. Scored 16 points grabbed 5 rebounds and dished out 2 assists and was monumental on their comeback trail against the Welcoat Dragons.

The rookie grade: Ronjay Buenafe - A+

Welcoat Dragons

Sucks to see Joe Devance leave the court after hitting a wide open three pointer. Joe left because of a sprained right ankle. Played for 4 minutes and scored 3 points and dished out an assist. Ryan Arana wasn't much of a factor too, scored 6 points on his debut game

The rookie grade: Joe Devance - INC
Ryan Arana - B-

Barangay Ginebra Kings

Coach Jong was confident with JR Aquino.. and he didn't disappoint. JR Aquino scored 7 points but other than that, his defensive intensity on the court was the one that impressed me. Macky played for only 5 minutes and scored 2 points. Got his shot blocked by Junthy on a fastbreak btw.

The rookie grade: JR Aquino - B
Macky Escalona - B-

Red Bull Barako

Their lone rookie Jojo Duncil did not play

The rookie grade: Jojo Duncil - INC

So that's it, I'd prolly post my rookie rankings next week, right after everybody plays their second game. :D