Arwind, Cabagnot ink P15.1M deal

Other stars sign lucrative pacts ahead of draft   

MANILA, Philippines - Arwind Santos and Alex Cabagnot were both rewarded a three-year contract extension worth P15.1 million following key roles in San Miguel Beer’s two-championship run in PBA Season 40.

Alaska Milk’s Dondon Hontiveros and the Star Hotshots’ Ian Sangalang were among others who signed lucrative pacts ahead of the PBA Rookie Draft which is usually the start of the busy wheeling and dealing in the local pro league.

Sangalang, though coming from an ACL surgery that sidelined him for almost the entire 40th PBA wars, signed the maximum pact for a PBA third-year pro.

The 6-foot-7 Star Hotshot center enjoyed a high bargaining leverage for his solid rookie year helping the team complete a grand slam season in 2013-14.

Hontiveros, at 38, was still able to command a maximum deal for the coming PBA Season 41 worth P420,000 a month or a total of P5.04 million.

Signing deals worth above P300,000 a month included Vic Manuel (two years) at Alaska Milk and Willy Wilson (one year) at Barako Bull.

Dave Marcelo, the former NCAA MVP awardee entering his fourth year in the pro, was extended for a year at Barangay Ginebra with a monthly pay of P200,000.

Close to that amount were the deals Josh Urbiztondo, Nico Salva and Justin Chua got at Ginebra, Barako Bull and Meralco, respectively. Chua is now a Bolt after being released by San Miguel Beer.

At Kia, LA Revilla and Mark Yee inked deals worth just close to P100,000 a month but with signing packages that included a car and a condominium unit.

At Blackwater, Jason Ballesteros and Bambam Gamalinda were extended for a year for packages worth P1.44 million and P1.2 million, respectively.

All the teams will be busier in the negotiation table after the 2015 Gatorade PBA Rookie Draft set Sunday at Robinsons Place Manila.

The ball clubs get a glimpse of the rookie hopefuls in a mini-tourney at the Gatorade Hoops Center in Mandaluyong City today. The aspirants are divided into eight teams, fighting it out for a cash pot of P50,000.

In Day One of the Gatorade Draft Combine, the players just went through anthropometry tests (basic measurement like height, weight and arm span), functional movements and performance tests (agility, speed, endurance and strength).

“This undertaking is a must for all applicants so I hope everyone will be there. For the coaches, this gives them the chance to assess their prospects for Sunday’s Draft,” said PBA commissioner Chito Narvasa.

PBA rookie draftees do some stretching together with an aerobic instructress before the start of the Gatorade Draft Combine at the Gatorade Hoops Center in Mandaluyong. The pro league aspirants went through anthropometry tests (basic measurement like height, weight and arm span), functional movements and performance tests (agility, speed, endurance and strength) in Day One and will figure in a mini tournament in Day Two. JUN MENDOZA