Breaking Down the Complete Results From the 2018 PBA Draft Selections

Let me take you back to that electric evening at Robinson's Place Manila in 2018, when the Philippine Basketball Association draft unfolded with the kind of drama we rarely see in player selection events. I've covered numerous drafts throughout my career, but this particular one stands out not just for the raw talent on display, but for the incredible narratives that emerged—stories of redemption, unexpected steals, and franchise-altering decisions that would shape the league for years to come.

When I look at that draft class today, what strikes me most is how many teams nailed their first-round picks while completely missing the gold hidden in later rounds. The top three selections—Bobby Ray Parks Jr., CJ Perez, and Robert Bolick—were about as safe as bets get in Philippine basketball. Parks going to Blackwater at number one made perfect sense given his pedigree and overseas experience, though I've always wondered how different his career might have looked if he'd landed with a more established franchise. Perez to Columbian Dyip at second was arguably the steal of the draft, and I say this having watched him develop into one of the most explosive scorers in recent PBA memory. His 20.8 points per game in his rookie season wasn't just impressive—it was historic.

But where this draft truly fascinated me was in the middle rounds, where teams either demonstrated brilliant scouting or complete oversight. The third round specifically produced several players who outperformed their draft positions dramatically. I remember sitting there as the picks unfolded, thinking how some teams were overthinking what should have been straightforward selections. There's an art to balancing immediate needs against long-term value that few franchises truly master, and the 2018 draft exposed this divide quite clearly.

Which brings me to that incredible performance referenced in our notes—the former champion drilling those clutch threes to force overtime not once, but twice. Having witnessed numerous draft classes transition to the pros, I can tell you that this particular player's late-round selection represents one of the biggest valuation errors I've seen in my years covering the PBA. The numbers—20 points, four rebounds, and two assists—only tell part of the story. What those statistics don't capture is the basketball IQ, the composure under pressure, the way he read defenses and found openings that shouldn't have existed. That he lasted until the fourth round still baffles me when I look back at his collegiate resume.

The teams that demonstrated the most sophisticated approach to this draft—San Miguel, Rain or Shine, and surprisingly, Phoenix—seemed to understand something crucial that others missed: in a draft deep with guard talent, the real value lay in identifying players with specific, translatable skills rather than seeking complete packages. Phoenix's selection of Jason Perkins at number four raised eyebrows at the time, but watching him develop into a reliable two-way forward has proven the wisdom of targeting players who fit specific systems rather than just taking the "best available" according to conventional wisdom.

What I find particularly compelling about analyzing this draft three years later is how clearly we can now see which teams properly evaluated talent versus those who drafted based on hype or immediate need. Magnolia's selection of Jio Jalalon at 14th overall looks brilliant in hindsight, while some earlier picks have failed to justify their draft positions. The lesson here, one that I've seen play out across multiple draft classes, is that successful teams draft for tomorrow's PBA, not yesterday's.

The second round produced what I consider the draft's most fascinating subplot—the run on big men that saw several projects selected ahead of more polished guards who would go on to have better careers. This reflects a recurring theme in PBA drafts where teams overvalue size and potential over proven guard skills, a miscalculation I've observed franchise after franchise make. The successful picks in this range tended to be guards who could contribute immediately rather than big men requiring years of development.

Looking at the complete draft results now, what stands out is how the most successful selections shared certain characteristics—players from winning college programs, those with specific elite skills rather than being merely "good at everything," and prospects who landed in systems that amplified their strengths. The misses, conversely, often involved teams reaching for athleticism over skill or selecting players based on single tournament performances rather than body of work.

The legacy of the 2018 draft class continues to unfold, but already we can draw important lessons about player evaluation that extend beyond basketball. The teams that succeeded did so because they understood their own systems, identified players whose skills translated to specific roles, and resisted the temptation to follow conventional wisdom when their scouting suggested better alternatives. As I reflect on that night and the careers that have developed since, I'm reminded that draft success isn't about hitting on every pick—it's about finding value where others don't see it, and having the courage to trust your evaluation over popular opinion.