Alaska gets Young; Purefoods has Hamilton

MANILA, Philippines - Alaska Milk decided to bring back Galen Young while awaiting the availability of Rosell Ellis even as Purefoods settled for Lousiana-Lafayette’s Brian Hamilton to complete the import roster for the Motolite PBA Fiesta Conference firing off Feb. 28 in Dumaguete.

Young, a former Alaska import who also had a stint with San Miguel Beer, arrives Thursday. Hamilton flew in yesterday morning.

“Galen plays for us as we wait to see what happens with Rosell’s playoffs (in the Australian league),” said Alaska coach Tim Cone.

The Giants, on the other hand, got Hamilton after Reggie Larry sustained an injury in a tune-up game with San Miguel Beer and Harvey Thomas exceeded the league’s the 6-foot-6 height limit.

But Hamilton could well be a better replacement.

Hamilton is a 6-foot-6, 193-pound small forward who starred for the Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin’ Cajuns from 2000-2005, winding up with collegiate career averages of 10.4 points, 6.1 rebounds, 1.9 steals and 1.4 assists.

Left undrafted in the NBA in 2005, Hamilton spent the 2005-06 season with the Pennsylvania Valley Dogs of the USBL, averaging 15.7 points while shooting .538 from the field.

In the 2007-08 season, he played for the Utah Flash of the D-League, appearing in 49 games, including 34 starts. He averaged 10.8 points, 5.6 rebounds and 2.3 assists in 31.2 minutes per contest.

His decent showing with the Utah Flash earned him a short contract with the New Jersey Nets. He was cut only last September.

Young, meanwhile, makes his return to the PBA after leading the Beermen to a semifinal finish in the 2007 Fiesta Conference topped by the Ellis-led Aces. He’s coming off a stint in the Australian National Basketball League.

After suiting up for the Beermen in 2007, Young returned to the CBA and earned the CBA Player of the Year honors where he proved himself as the go-to guy for the defending champion Yakama Sun Kings.