Dalawang mga bagong players na tila kahawig ng laro ng mga premyadong beterano na sina Terrence Romeo at Vic Manuel ang magbibigay ng bagong enerhiya sa koponan ng San Miguel Beer.
Masuwerteng matatawag ang koponan ng Beermen na bagamat hindi nagkaroon ng pagkakataon na makakuha ng first at second round picks sa nakaraang PBA Rookie Draft ay nagawa pa ring makasikwat ng dalawang players na inaasahang magbibigay ng karagdadagang singasing sa pinaka dominanteng koponan sa kaunaunahang professional basketball league sa Asya.
Kinuha ng San Miguel Beer si Troy Mallilin, isang 6-foot-4 forward na naglaro sa koponan ng Rizal Golden Coolers sa Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League, sa third round habang nagkaroon ng pagkakataon ang Beermen na ma-draft ang Youtube sensation na si Kyt Jimenez, sa ninth round (76th overall).
Hindi man nagkaroon ng oportunidad na makakuha ng players sa unang dalawang rounds, maituturing pa ring maswerte ang Beermen sa pagkakakopo sa dalawang rookies na ito.
“For a team that doesn’t have a first and second round picks,I would say that our team is really blessed,” ang sabi ni Abanilla. “Troy is a well-built player who can defend well at the post and can play the No.3 and No.4 spots similar to what Vic Manuel is doing.”
“On the other hand, we’re also lucky to have Kyt Jimenez as our late pick. We’re getting him not just because he’s an online sensation and he’s so popular in the internet, but we saw that he can really play. You can see the flashes of brilliance, but of course, he’s still adjusting to the system and the PBA brand of play.”
Dating Most Valuable Player ng National Collegiate Athletic Association na naglaro sa La Salle nung high school at nag-transfer sa Ateneo nung college, pero hindi masyadong nabigyan ng tsansa ni coach Tab Baldwin.
Pero nagningning si Mallilin bilang premyadong forward ng Rizal sa MPBL.
Makasaysayan naman ang kuwento ni Jimenez dahil bukod sa pagiging sikat na manlalaro online, gumawa rin siya ng pangalan sa MPBL bilang kunaunahang player ng liga na makagaw ng quadruple-double performance (33 points, 13 rebounds, 11 assists and 10 steals), at sapat na ito para mapukaw ang atensiyon ng Beermen.
Sina Mallilin at Jimenez ay binigyan ng tig-dalawang taong kontrata ng San Miguel.
Dahil dito, matutupad na ang pangarap ni Jimenez na makasama sa iisang koponan ang kanyang idolong si Romeo.
“The addition of those two guys had really energized our team,” dagdag pa ni Abanilla. “The coaches love them and that’s the reason why they really pushed for the signing of these two players. It was really the coaches, headed of course, by Jorge Gallent, who pushed for their inclusion.”
