Welcoat Dragons

(also known as Welcoat Dragons)



Team History:

What do Yancy de Ocampo, Ronald Tubid, Rommel Adducul, Marc Pingris, James Yap, Paul Artadi, Ervin Sotto, Don Allado, Renren Ritualo and Anthony Washington have in common? Well, one time or another they were part of the Welcoat team in the amateurs. The Dragons were a legend in PBL history, winning multiple crowns and earning respect in amateur circles as one of the most successful franchises ever. Last year, they decided to join the PBA bandwagons minus its star players of the yesteryears, after years of waiting. From the expansion draft, they tried but got no luck in retrieving their former players. They did the next best thing, draft young talents who had skills but were hardly given opportunity to display their wares: Rob Wainwright, Denver Lopez, Gilbert Lao, Nino Gelig. They directly elevated Jay Sagad, Jay-R Reyes and Junjun Cabatu as part of a league concession and signed up free agents Jojo Tangkay, Adonis Sta. Maria, Froilan Baguion and from the draft, Jireh Ibanez. Leo Austria, the team’s coach and consultant in its PBL team, was appointed head coach of the team, with Alex Compton, Caloy Garcia and Bogs Adornado as assistants. With a talented youthful crew, everybody was upbeat of the Dragons’ chances in the pro league but found out as soon as games were played on the hardcourt, life in the PBA was not as easy as they imagine it to be. They were waylaid on the court and repeatedly abused by opposing teams in the Philippine Cup, but had moments when they looked good and competitive, especially in their wins against powerhouse teams Talk N Text and San Miguel Beer.

Review of the 2006-07 Season:

Philippine Cup: The Dragons labored hard in the offseason to get the players they want in the amateur draft, dispersal draft, and in the free agent market but quickly found out that not everything is handed out in a silver platter. They tried desperately to lure Rommel Adducul away from Ginebra but couldn’t get a deal done. Luckily, Jay-R Reyes played like no rookie, displaying incredible maturity for a player his age. He was one of the league leaders in rebounds and shot blocks, and gave Welcoat fans something to look forward to in the future. Their biggest win at the start of the season came at the expense of San Miguel (96-88, October 15, 2006) but games like that were rare and soon the Dragons found itself hugging the cellar languishing with 15 defeats, including 9 straight to end the classification.

Fiesta Cup: An unexpected gift came in the Fiesta Cup for the Dragons. Assistant coach Alex Compton, who had for several years haggled for a chance to play in the PBA but was repeatedly denied (he’s a pure American), was finally given the green light to play. The PBA allowed Welcoat to suit up Compton for one conference as a concession for the team due to its horrendous showing in the Philippine Cup. Compton wasted no time to make his presence to Welcoat and the rest of the league. He had respectable averages of 14.33 ppg (on 32.6% on threes), 4.89 rpg, 5.67 apg and ranked 3rd in steals with 1.06 spg. Alas, his efforts went for naught. The team managed to win only 4 games, an improvement of only one game from the previous conference. The team had problems with its imports: Charles Clarke, Rob Sanders, and lastly Wayland White who all had respectable credentials but couldn’t get the job done for the talent-strapped Dragons.

Biggest Blunders:

What? An early blunder for a newcomer? In the 2006 Draft, the Dragons had the tenth and last pick in the draft and was hoping to latch on to either three promising Letran Knights: Aaron Aban, Mark Andaya, and Boyet Bautista. You know what happened. They went seventh, eighth and ninth. The Dragons probably did not foresee this and were rattled when their turn came. They drafted UP alum Abby Santos who was impressive in the pre-draft camps but was perceived as “raw” for the pros. Santos did not play a single minute with Welcoat, and instead, hooked up with Talk N Text. With the tenth pick they could have selected Fil-Am sensation Chris Pacana or firebrand Magnum Membrere who went number 15 to Coca Cola and number 19 to Red Bull, respectively. Or they could have traded the pick for future considerations.