PBA Semis Player Power Rankings: Gary David, Ranidel de Ocampo lead the way

AKTV/Paolo Papa

It’s do-or-die Wednesday. On one hand, we’re sad that both the Powerade-Rain or Shine and Petron-Talk ‘N Text series are both coming to an end. On the other hand, how crazy would the finals be?

1. Gary David (↔)

In the advanced basketball stats movement in the NBA, geeks have begun looking at point differential as an indicator of success. Looking at the Powerade-Rain or Shine series, the Elasto Painters have the edge in this department, with the Tigers stealing two games in the series in the last few seconds. So logically-speaking, Rain or Shine should be favored in Game Seven — except that Powerade counts in its lineup Gary David, who could explode for 40 points and win the damn game by himself.

2. Ranidel de Ocampo (↑ from #9)

De Ocampo has put together a quietly-brilliant series for Talk ‘N Text; he actually leads the team in scoring, and his outside shooting has opened up the lane for Tropang Texters guards.

3. Marcio Lassiter (↓ from #2)

Prior to the season, a multi-titled PBA coach told us how lucky Powerade was to get Lassiter at No. 4; the coach said he would’ve picked the Filipino-American guard top overall if he had the choice. The most amazing thing about Lassiter’s semis performance? He has made himself almost as important as David for Powerade in this series.

4. Jimmy Alapag (re-entry)

We were in awe of Alapag’s Game Six explosion to carry Talk ‘N Text, but we can’t help but wonder: Can Mighty Mouse save the day again in Game Seven? But even if he doesn’t come out as brilliant, the Tropang Texters should have enough depth to be competitive.

5. Paul Lee (↑ from #10)

We were talking about Paul Lee at the very start of the tournament, and if he leads Rain or Shine to the finals, we’d be talking about him until the very end of the tournament. This 22-year-old rookie has a chance to do something very, very special.

6. Arwind Santos (↔)

Arwind Santos only had three defensive rebounds in Game Six against Talk ‘N Text, and it’s been a bit disappointing that he hasn’t been able to dominate the Talk ‘N Text frontline despite Kelly Williams being injured. That said, we don’t wanna bet against him having an insane Game Seven.

7. Alex Cabagnot (↓ from #3)

Throughout these rankings, we’ve been harping about how much of a load Cabagnot has been carrying, and the effects might finally been showing; in the past two games, the Talk ‘N Text tag team of Alapag and Jason Castro has outplayed the Petron guard.

8. Jason Castro (↔)

Even though he’s had a couple of good games, this series feels like a disappointment for Jason Castro, who we feel should have been more dominant. Then again, he has one more game to take care of that perception.

9. Jeff Chan (re-entry)

Chan has shot 13-of-24 from the three-point line in Rain or Shine’s wins in the semis. In the losses? 1-of-16. So yeah, he’s important.

10. Danny Ildefonso (↓ from #4)

If Petron were to win, we wouldn’t be surprised if the veteran center is prominently involved in the final play. And if they do make it to the finals, there would be few players we would be as happy to see on the court.

Dropping out: JVee Casio, Chris Lutz

Previous Rankings:
- PBA Semis Player Power Rankings: King David takes back his throne
- PBA Semis Player Power Rankings: Cabagnot, Ildefonso take top two spots
- PBA Semis Player Power Rankings: David, Cabagnot still rule the field
- PBA Semis Player Power Rankings: Gary David back on top of the heap
- PBA Semis Player Power Rankings: Rain or Shine gunners take top spots
- Player Power Rankings: The PBA Philippine Cup Semifinals

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