PBA: Unknown picks Felix Lemetti, Avan Nava look to spring surprise

MANILA, Philippines–Majority of the players selected in the first round of the recent PBA Rookie Draft are names familiar to most basketball fans.

Felix Lemetti and Avan Nava will need to put in some work to become recognizable to a casual PBA follower.

“I hope I can be the surprise of the draft,” said Lemetti, who was chosen eighth overall by Rain or Shine last Sunday at Glorietta Activity Center in Makati City.

READ: PBA Draft: Baltazar, Barefield and a few first round surprises

Little is known of Lemetti, who was born in Sweden to a Swedish father and a Filipino mother hailing from Mindoro, except for the credentials he built while playing college in the United States.

Videos surfacing online show Lemetti, measured at 6-foot-0 during last week’s Draft Combine, having a knack for draining outside shots.

But he was able to impress coach Yeng Guiao and Rain or Shine, which used its other pick to get Lemetti after their the selection of Caelan Tiongson at seventh overall.

“I saw a couple of mock drafts and I didn’t think they were gonna pick me,” said Lemetti. “But I’m happy they did, for sure, and I’m excited to get to work.”

Nava was the final pick of the first round by way of San Miguel Beer, which was impressed with his play from a recent overseas stint.

The Filipino-Canadian played in South Korea for the Seoul Samsung Thunders where he got to face compatriots who have taken advantage of the Korean Basketball League’s Asian import allowance.

“I played against Ethan Alvano, Justin Gutang, Rhenz Abando and learned a lot from those guys out there,” said Nava.

While Nava is ecstatic over getting picked, he faces a steep challenge of cracking the Beermen roster, which is loaded from top to bottom.

And that is something that Nava acknowledges.

“I know they’ve been winning championships for years so I will try to learn a lot,” said Nava.

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