FILE – NBTC and SBP officials during the National High School Championship presser. Randolph B. Leongson/INQUIRER.net
Spicing up the seventh edition of the High School All-Star Game, the SM-National Basketball Training Center (NBTC) is introducing a new innovation to determine who are the best high school players in the country.
The official grassroots arm of the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP) will release weekly power rankings naming the top 24 high school players from the UAAP, NCAA, CESAFI, MMBL, and FCAAF tournaments in the buildup for the much-anticipated All-Star exposition this March.
Every week, a selection committee made up of reputable sportswriters, coaches, and a statistician will convene to make the list.
Ateneo’s Kai Sotto and SJ Belangel, UST’s CJ Cansino, and NCAA MVP Will Gozum of Mapua, among others, will be ranked weekly based on their performances gauged in seven categories: league stats, impact in team, team record, leadership, offense, defense, and level of competition.
The final rankings, to be released in early March, will determine who among the cagers will earn an invite to the annual SM-NBTC High School All-Star Game at Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.
“SM-NBTC believes that these rankings will make the race to be part of the top 24 high school players more exciting while also making more of people aware of the abundance of talent that’s in hand in the high school level,” said SM-NBTC program director Eric Altamirano, who likened the “NBTC 24” to the “Rivals 100” high school ranking done in the United States.
The SM-NBTC High School Player Power Rankings will be released in mainstream and online media portals every Monday.