In this five-part series, we look back at the PBA drafts from 1985 - the year the league instituted a rookie draft - to 2015 and try to identify the biggest steals of each draft. We've published the steals from 1985-1990, 1991-1996, 1997-2002, and 2003-2008. Here are the ones from 2009-2015.
The 2010s was a period that featured late round picks who didn't become perennial All-Stars, but rather quality starters and role players.
Perhaps with more coverage and data on local college and foreign-based prospects, teams started making safer bets early in the drafts. But that doesn't mean there weren't any diamonds in the rough that shone in the pressure-cooker of the PBA.
This time also saw the end of the PBL, which basically functioned as the PBA's developmental league for years. Whether or not that became a factor on how PBA franchises evaluated draft prospects is an interesting study for another day.
2009
Top overall pick (Burger King) - Japeth Aguilar (ADMU, Wake Forest University)
Steal - None. The 2009 draft will be remembered mostly for the controversy between top pick Japeth Aguilar and the Burger King franchise. In a nut-shell, Aguilar decided to spend virtually all of his rookie year with the Gilas program and only suited up for a single game with Burger King.
It was a top-heavy draft class, that featured college stars Jervy Cruz and Rico Maierhofer as some of the biggest names. While no one drafted could be classified as a steal, the undrafted Josh Urbiztondo turned out to be a solid contributor unearthed in 2009. Urbiztondo played out his rookie year with the Sta. Lucia franchise before eventually finding his way to B-Meg, where he won his only PBA championship in 2012.
2010
Top overall pick (Air21) - Nonoy Baclao (ADMU)
Steal (Air21, traded to Powerade on draft day) - Sean Anthony (1st round, 6th overall)
I didn't want to pick players selected in the first round for this list, but it was hard to ignore the often-under-appreciated Sean Anthony.
The physical forward out of McGill University outperformed Nonoy Baclao, Rabeh Al-Hussaini, Rey Guevarra, Elmer Espiritu, and Josh Vanlandingham -- all selected before Anthony -- throughout the course of his PBA career.
Anthony has been somewhat of a journeyman, playing for seven PBA franchises in his 10 years in the league. But since 2017, Anthony has found a home with the NorthPort franchise as a key piece in their championship aspirations.
2011
Top overall pick (Powerade) - Jvee Casio (DLSU)
Steal - None. The 2011 Rookie Draft saw another top-heavy class with quality guards. This class in particular saw the arrival of many Gilas 1.0 products, who unsurprisingly dominated the first round of the draft.
The closest thing to a steal was Dylan Ababou as the last pick of the first round. Ababou carved out a respectable PBA career, but with the talent that was picked ahead of him, it's hard to classify him as an overlooked prospect.
2012
Top overall pick (Petron) - June Mar Fajardo (UC)
Steal - None. The 2012 PBA Rookie Draft changed the landscape of the league because of the arrival of eventual perennial MVP June Mar Fajardo. Second pick Calvin Abueva came away with Rookie of the Year honors in 2012, but as we all know "The Kraken" would become a game-changing force in the PBA.
The 2012 draft class was relatively deep, with the second round featuring starters and role players. Second round gems in 2012 included Yousef Taha, Dave Marcelo, Jewel Ponferada, Emman Monfort, and Kelly Nabong. With so many contributors picked in the second round, it's hard to label any of them as a clear-cut steal.
2013
Top overall pick (Ginebra) - Greg Slaughter (ADMU)
Steal (Alaska Aces, traded to TNT) - Poy Erram (2nd round, 15th overall)
Big men dominated the 2013 draft class. Slaughter, the number one overall pick, was followed by Ian Sangalang and Raymond Almazan. In the first round, two other centers were selected with Isaac Holstein and Justin Chua picked at 7th and 10th, respectively.
Looking back, it's hard to imagine that Poy Erram slid all the way down to 15th given how much the league values big men. Traded to Talk 'N Text on draft day, it took awhile for Erram to hit his stride in the PBA. In fact, Erram didn't end up signing with TNT and found himself in a Blackwater jersey.
But soon Erram became one of the most valued bigs in the league. A rim-defending presence, a high-work rate, and a developing skill set on offense, Erram would have been one of the top picks in a redraft of the 2013 class.
2014
Top overall pick (GlobalPort) - Stanley Pringle (Penn State)
Steal - (Alaska Aces) - Rome dela Rosa (SBC) - 2nd round, 13th overall
The infamous 2014 draft saw the Kia Sorento use their first pick on boxing champion and playing coach Manny Pacquiao. Expansion teams Blackwater and Kia both selected a high number of players and unsurprisingly hit on a few late-round picks.
The two franchises unearthed good contributors that still ply their trade in the PBA today, such as Brian Heruela, Kenneth Ighalo, Paolo Taha, and Raul Soyud. But the steal of the draft has to go to Rome dela Rosa, who was drafted by the Aces with the 13th overall pick.
Despite starting his career on the bench behind Tony Dela Cruz and Calvin Abueva, Dela Rosa blossomed into a key piece when he was moved to the Purefoods franchise. Dela Rosa was not the flashiest name of that draft, but his productivity and development earned him a spot on a championship roster.
2015
Top overall pick (TNT) - Mo Tautuaa
Steal - None so far. The 2015 PBA Rookie Draft class was loaded in a sense that many of the players are still balling today. After the first round, though, most if not all the draftees have yet to reach star status in the league, but the potential is still there.
The first round featured Mo Tautuaa, Troy Rosario, Maverick Ahanmisi, Chris Newsome, Scottie Thompson, and Baser Amer. In the later rounds, there are great starters and role players in Aljon Mariano, Simon Enciso, Kris Rosales, Nico Elorde, Jerramy King, Samboy de Leon, and Michael DiGregorio. But none of them have stood out as a steal just yet.
Who knows? Maybe with more time in the league, one of them separates himself as a clear cut steal of this draft class and becomes an integral cog on a championship team.