We think these guys will be the best local men’s hoopsters in UAAP Season 87.
UAAP Season 87 is set to take off this Saturday, with host University of the Philippines Fighting Maroons taking on Katipunan neighbors Ateneo Blue Eagles. On Sunday, there will be a triple bill featuring the FEU Tamaraws taking on the Adamson Soaring Falcons, the UE Red Warriors facing the UST Growling Tigers, and the defending champions DLSU Green Archers clashing with the NU Bulldogs.
While several key players have left the league – among them La Salle’s Jonnel Policarpio, Ateneo’s Kai Ballungay, UP’s CJ Cansino, and FEU’s Xyrus Torres – and others are sitting out this season due to residency – Mason Amos, Rey Remogat and Kean Baclaan come to mind – there’s still plenty of individual talent out there.
As a lead-up to Season 87, we rank the 10 best local UAAP men’s basketball players. We are excluding the foreign student athletes from our rankings, as we will rank them separately.
There is no fancy formula or advanced analytics to drive these rankings. Instead, we asked ourselves the question, “How would Team X be without this player?” If the answer is “not as good as they are now,” then the player deserved consideration for a top 10 slot. If it’s “pretty bad” then the player is a top-five prospect. It’s far from a perfect system, but for purposes of this article, it will have to do.
With this, here are our top 10:
1. Kevin Quiambao (DLSU Green Archers)
Your undisputed 1A. Simply put, Quiambao is the best local college player today. He is the reigning UAAP MVP and is the only college player on the current Gilas Pilipinas 12-man roster (Amos is technically a reserve). Pound for pound, he brings more to the table than any other player out there.
Quiambao posted excellent all-around numbers of 16.4 points, 10.4 rebounds, and 5.2 assists to lead the Green Archers to their first crown since 2016. If he had gone pro after last season, the Green Archers’ chances of going back-to-back would have all but evaporated. It’s not an exaggeration to say that their aspirations of repeating rest heavily on KQ’s shoulders.
2. Francis Lopez (UP Fighting Maroons)
Lopez was last season’s Rookie of the Year after posting averages of 9.7 points, 7.3 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.3 steals. Expect him to make a leap this season and become a top-tier player for the Fighting Maroons.
The raw talent has always been there for Lopez. It’s just a matter of properly harnessing and unleashing it on the competition. There’s still a well of untapped potential there that, once he digs into it, will make him a match-up nightmare for anyone. He’s tall for his position, has crazy athleticism and quickness, and very good defensive instincts. Once he nails down his outside shot, he’ll be close to unstoppable.
3. Mike Phillips (DLSU Green Archers)
If KQ is the brains of the operation, then Phillips is the heart and soul. The only other player on DLSU’s roster with Gilas experience (Cambodia SEA Games), Phillips brings energy and toughness in the post, not to mention a motor that’s always at full speed, and by this stage in his UAAP career he’s already a savvy veteran who is a step up on most of the other bigs.
His Season 86 numbers of 9.1ppg and 9.5rpg may not jump out at you, and his free throw shooting (53.3%) still needs some work, but you’d be hard-pressed to name a local big in the UAAP who has Phillips’ combination of experience, rebounding, interior defense and Energizer Bunny movement.
4. Nic Cabañero (UST Growling Tigers)
Season 86’s leading scorer (16.8ppg) and shot-taker (a whopping 16.5 attempts per game), Cabañero is at no. 4 because of his ability to put points on the board. He might not be the most efficient player (25% 3-point shooting and 53% free throw shooting) and his shot selection sometimes drives Pido Jarencio up the wall, but with the game on the line, he’s the one player you’d want to have the ball in his hands.
Cabañero proved as much during last summer’s FilOil Preseason Cup when his baseline jumper at the buzzer lifted UST to a one-point win. And with Remogat sitting it out, he’s primed to be Season 87’s top scorer again.
5. JD Cagulangan (UP Fighting Maroons)
Cagulangan had an injury-filled, up-and-down Season 86 campaign. He averaged less than 7.0ppg and shot less than 30% from the field. So why is he in the top five? Because he has looked terrific for the Fighting Maroons in various preseason leagues this year as if he is a man on a mission.
Mai-Mai will enter Season 87 as the league’s premier point guard on the league’s most loaded team. He’s a veteran, he’s brimming with confidence, and he’s determined to finish his collegiate career with a bang. You couldn’t ask for a more potent combination.
6. Forthsky Padrigao (UST Growling Tigers)
After a year’s residency following a rather messy exit from Ateneo, Padrigao looks ready to reclaim his place among the league’s elite guards. He looked good during UST’s run in the FilOil Preseason Cup, and there’s no reason to believe he can’t recapture the form that made him a Mythical Team member in Season 85.
Padrigao was supposed to be one of the cornerstones of the Blue Eagles’ post-COVID era. Instead, he now finds himself leading a rebuilding program, but in the end, that might work to his advantage as he now needs to step up and flex his leadership and playmaking skills.
7. Jake Figueroa (NU Bulldogs)
With the departure of Baclaan, Figueroa now stands to be the main man for the Bulldogs in Season 87 as they aim to duplicate or even surpass their third-place finish in Season 86. The former juniors MVP led NU in scoring last season (12.6ppg) on a respectable 47.4% field goal shooting.
While a return to the Final Four might be a challenge for NU, there’s little doubt that Figueroa will stuff the stat sheet for the Bulldogs once he gets to play. He will reportedly miss at least their opening game as he recovers from a hand injury, and as long as his absence is short-term, then he’ll be a top-ten player this season.
8. Harold Alarcon (UP Fighting Maroons)
Like Cagulangan, Alarcon is highly motivated to bounce back in Season 87 and lead the Maroons back to the promised land. He did well in the preseason, including in a recent tournament in Taiwan where UP went unbeaten and he was the team’s second-leading scorer (10.5ppg on 53% shooting).
Alarcon has long been one of Goldwin Monteverde’s trusted lieutenants on the playing court, and at this stage of his college playing career, he’s bound to put up veteran numbers even on this loaded UP team.
9. Chris Koon (Ateneo Blue Eagles)
With Ballungay jumping to the pros and Amos jumping to La Salle, Koon finds himself the top dog for the Blue Eagles in Season 87. In a way, he already was last season, having led Ateneo in minutes per game (27.5) while chipping in 9.6 points and 4.9 boards per outing.
Koon was at times inconsistent in Season 86, the result of playing through a foot injury, but now as the leader of a relatively young Blue Eagles squad he will be expected to put up bigger numbers in Season 87.
10. Cedrick Manzano (Adamson Soaring Falcons)
Manzano has seen a steady increase in his scoring production, from 6.4ppg in Season 84 to 7.8ppg in Season 85 to 8.1ppg last season (second-best on the team). All signs point to this upward trend continuing this season.
An argument could be made for his teammate Mathew Montebon to get this spot, but Manzano brings more to the table with his defense and was a plus-20 during his time on the court last season. He also impressed in the recent FilOil Preseason Cup, playing a major role in the Falcons’ twin wins.
Others who were considered: Gerry Abadiano (UP), Jared Bahay (Ateneo), Wello Lingolingo (UE), Mathew Montebon (Adamson), Veejay Pre (FEU).
Banner Images from UAAP Media Bureau and FilOil.