7 Chargers find home in five teams

Seven displaced Shell players, led by 6-foot-5 forward Marlon Legaspi, were picked during the dispersal draft involving the former Turbochargers at the PBA office inside the Ultra Complex yesterday.

Legaspi and guard Rensy Bajar went to Air21, Celino Cruz and Rob Duat to Red Bull, Carlo Sharma to Coca-Cola, Banjo Calpito to Alaska Milk and Joey Mente to Talk n Text, leaving 10 former Shell players in the unrestricted free agent pool.

But all the seven players drafted are all without existing contracts and they could also end up in the unrestricted free agent pool if they’re not able to impress their new teams in practice.

Basically, Air21, Red Bull, Coca-Cola, Alaska Milk and Talk n Text only took the signing rights or rights of first refusal on their choices.

Purefoods, Ginebra San Miguel and San Miguel Beer passed up on Jerry Codiñera, Chris Jackson, Adonis Sta. Maria, Eugene Tejada, Jeck Chia, Edwin Bacani, Arnold Gamboa, Tonyboy Espinosa, Estong Ballesteros and Jun Marzan.

Sta. Lucia Realty yielded its rights for the No. 2 pick to Red Bull, which exercised it in picking Cruz.

"They (Cruz and Duat) have a chance to land a spot in our team but they have to show their wares in practice," said Red Bull team manager Tony Chua.

Both Cruz and Duat are expected to pass through the proverbial eye of the needle with the former having to slug it out with Jimwell Torion, Topex Robinson and Warren Ybañez at pointguard spot and the latter with Vergel Meneses, Lordy Tugade and Junthy Valenzuela in the wings.

Curiously, Torion, Robinson and Ybañez are still unsigned like Cruz.

Chris Jackson could have been a blue-chip commodity in the draft if not for his indefinite suspension pending the completion of his documents to be filed in the PBA Commissioner’s Office.

Jackson is facing the same problem of Ginebra’s Eric Menk and Coca-Cola’s Rudy Hatfield.