2027 PBA DRAFT | THE ODDS OF TITAN ULTRA GETTING THE TOP PICK

A couple of days ago, I quietly posted my first 2027 PBA Mock Draft.

Needless to say, I think I did pretty well.

And then, Titan Ultra happened.

Ugh.

It all started when Joshua Munzon was being dealt to TNT for Joe Celzo and, most importantly, TNT’s 2029 first-round pick, or Season 53 if you want to be technical about it. Yes, this isn’t the optimal trade for the Giant Risers, but what team would want Munzon, even if he’s a good scorer and defender, if you label him as uncoachable?

I mean, to Munzon’s credit, not only is he a PBA veteran, but he also has international experience. Furthermore, it’s not like Titan Ultra gave him the right pieces to work with.

So, it’s either they let Munzon walk or get something out of him.

But then, the unfortunate thing happened.

Titan Ultra saw Bryan Sajonia as their future, and now, his present is on hold after an injury devastated his left knee, tearing his ACL, PCL, and MCL.

This is important because Titan Ultra would acquire a seldom-used big man, have to wait about two and a half years for the first-round pick, and need a scorer who can fill the role of Munzon and Sajonia.

Hopefully, by this time, the PBA will allow Will Navarro to play for them, but they might need to tank Season 51 as well.

However, I think their mediocrity has its perks. Titan Ultra may find itself at No. 1 or No. 2.

Titan Ultra placed ninth in the Philippine Cup with a 4-7 win-loss record. This conference carries more weight than the other import-laden conferences, with the Philippine Cup accounting for 40 percent and both the Commissioner’s Cup and Governors’ Cup accounting for 30 percent each. In the same conference, Blackwater and Terrafirma posted identical 1-10 records, with Blackwater getting the edge because the Bossings beat Team Dyip, 107-87.

In the Commissioner’s Cup, Titan Ultra and Blackwater both had 2-10 records, with the Giant Risers getting the win over the Bossings, 102-98. Terrafirma ranked tenth in the standings with a 4-8 record.

However, given that Munzon would be benched until they find a suitable trade partner, and if they accept TNT’s most recent offer, I doubt they can win their three remaining games with Tirrell Brown, Fran Yu, and Jerrick Balanza as their main men. In fact, I doubt they have much of a fighting chance against Converge, NLEX, and Terrafirma.

Besides, what good would it do Terrafirma to let Titan Ultra win? Unless their SMC lords tell them otherwise, with four games left and Ginebra having dibs on their first-round pick due to the Maverick Ahanmisi trade, the best thing for Team Dyip is to dig deep and eke out victories against TNT, Macau, San Miguel, and Titan Ultra.

It’s also the same thing with Blackwater. With Pat Aquino as coach, all of a sudden, the team has direction. Moreover, their top pick has been ceded to the NLEX Road Warriors, NO THANKS to the Brandon Ganuelas-Rosser trade. In 11 seasons and a total of 28 conferences, Blackwater has had only five quarterfinal appearances and a playoff for eighth place, which they lost. Meralco has two games left, and Ginebra has four, while Blackwater is tied with Phoenix for third place, with Magnolia, Meralco, Rain or Shine, and Ginebra as their final opponents. Sedrick Barefield, who, like Munzon, also found himself on the trade block, is doing fine under Aquino.

With Meralco and Ginebra struggling, Blackwater might find themselves in the quarterfinals, which is bad news for NLEX and good news for Titan Ultra.

Check out these scenarios.

SCENARIO A

BLACKWATER 10 | TERRAFIRMA 11 | TITAN ULTRA 12

GINEBRA GETS NUMBER ONE PICK

RK	TEAM	PC	CC	GC	PC	CC	GC	TOT
1	TERRA (GINEBRA)	12	10	11	4.8	3.0	3.3	11.1
2	BWATER (NLEX)	11	12	10	4.4	3.6	3.0	11.0
3	TITAN ULTRA	9	11	12	3.6	3.3	3.6	10.5

SCENARIO B

TERRAFIRMA 10 | BLACKWATER 11 | TITAN ULTRA 12

NLEX GETS NUMBER ONE PICK

RK	TEAM	PC	CC	GC	PC	CC	GC	TOT
1	BWATER (NLEX)	11	12	11	4.4	3.6	3.3	11.3
2	TERRA (GINEBRA)	12	10	10	4.8	3.0	3.0	10.8
3	TITAN ULTRA	9	11	12	3.6	3.3	3.6	10.5

SCENARIO C

BLACKWATER 9 | TERRAFIRMA 10 | TITAN ULTRA 12

GINEBRA GETS NUMBER ONE PICK

RK	TEAM	PC	CC	GC	PC	CC	GC	TOT
1	TERRA (GINEBRA)	12	10	10	4.8	3.0	3.0	10.8
2	BWATER (NLEX)	11	12	9	4.4	3.6	2.7	10.7
3	TITAN ULTRA	9	11	12	3.6	3.3	3.6	10.5

SCENARIO D

TERRAFIRMA 9 | BLACKWATER 10 | TITAN ULTRA 12

GINEBRA AND TITAN ULTRA ARE TIED FOR SECOND?

RK	TEAM	PC	CC	GC	PC	CC	GC	TOT
1	BWATER (NLEX)	11	12	10	4.4	3.6	3.0	11.0
2?	TERRA (GINEBRA)	12	10	9	4.8	3.0	2.7	10.5
2?	TITAN ULTRA	9	11	12	3.6	3.3	3.6	10.5

SCENARIO E

BLACKWATER 8 | TERRAFIRMA 9 | TITAN ULTRA 12

GINEBRA AND TITAN ULTRA ARE TIED FOR FIRST?

RK	TEAM	PC	CC	GC	PC	CC	GC	TOT
1?	TERRA (GINEBRA)	12	10	9	4.8	3.0	2.7	10.5
1?	TITAN ULTRA	9	11	12	3.6	3.3	3.6	10.5
3	BWATER (NLEX)	11	12	8	4.4	3.6	2.4	10.4

SCENARIO F

TERRAFIRMA 8 | BLACKWATER 9 | TITAN ULTRA 12

NLEX GETS NUMBER ONE PICK

RK	TEAM	PC	CC	GC	PC	CC	GC	TOT
1	BWATER (NLEX)	11	12	9	4.4	3.6	2.7	10.7
2	TITAN ULTRA	9	11	12	3.6	3.3	3.6	10.5
3	TERRA (GINEBRA)	12	10	8	4.8	3.0	2.4	10.2

So, if you saw the scenarios, this is where we’re at.

Terrafirma has to finish one spot lower than Blackwater for Titan Ultra to get the top pick. I know there are other variables we need to consider, like the near-impossibility of Ginebra staying in the bottom part of their group, but right now, if Blackwater ends up eighth in the Governors’ Cup, then Terrafirma needs to finish ninth.

That said, they can’t go any lower than ninth because of how Titan Ultra fared in the Philippine Cup.

But that’s how it works. Titan Ultra can still score the top spot.

But now comes the other problem: Who will they choose?

Because it feels like Kymani Ladi and DJ Fenner are the top picks, but with the loss of their top two scorers, Nic Cabanero’s stock just got a boost. I mean, if I had to choose a player comparison for him, I think it would be Gary David, with a penchant for filling up the rest of the stat sheet. Again, the numbers he put up at UST, he was able to replicate in the MPBL.

Kymani Ladi may be 6’7”, but there’s still a gaping hole at the shooting guard and small forward positions. And while Fenner could deliver import-like numbers for Titan Ultra, he’s hardly a player they can build around for the future since he’ll be 34 in 2027.

I even think it would be okay for Titan Ultra to trade down, possibly with Terrafirma for their fifth pick, and maybe find a way to swap a guy like Aris Dionisio or Joseph Eriobu for either Louie Sangalang or Mark Nonoy.

But yeah, given how bad their season has been, any of these moves could only work well for them next season. And hopefully, if they still can’t pile on the wins, they can find a way to get the top pick in the 2028 PBA Draft.