James Forrester is the surprise picked in the recently concluded PBA Rookie draft pick for the 2013-2014 season as he was chosen as fourth overall pick by Ginebra San Miguel ahead of popular college stars such as Terrence Romeo, RR Garcia, Jeric Teng, and Nico Salva.
James Forrester (Photo: PBA Image/Nuki Sabio)
The former Ateneo standout was chosen by Ginebra alongside their No. 1 draft pick Greg Slaughter who was fist chosen by the Gin Kings lead by coach Ato Agustin to lead this year’s rookies. The PBA rookie draft was held at the Robinsons Place in Malate, Manila on Sunday, November 3, 2013.
In acquiring Forrester as the fourth overall pick, Ginebra traded their big men Rico Maierhofer and Willie Wilson to the Barako Bull who had the No. 4 pick card before the official rookie draft.
The selection of the 6 feet and 2 inches guard from Arellano University surprised a lot of sports enthusiasts during the Draft Day but the selection made a perfect sense for coach Ato Agustin, who sees Forrester as both a big boosts and star-in-waiting in Ginebra’s already crowded backcourt.
Coach Ato Agustin also cited James Forrester as someone who plays like GlobalPort All-Star guard Sol Mercado with his energy and hustle. According to Agustin, a former PBA MVP, despite having two blue-chip prospects in the first round, he was quick to temper expectations of the Ginebra faithful, saying that that challenge is now to mesh all the talent into one cohesive unit.