By Ivan Saldajeno
MANDALUYONG--He may be highly touted as the first pick of the special PBA Draft for Gilas 5.0 players, but Mac Belo could be making a strong case for the slam dunk contest as well.
Belo, who was measured at 6-feet-3 1/4, had the best standing and maximum vertical leaps during Day 1 of the PBA Draft Combine at the Gatorade Hoops Center on Wednesday.
The former FEU King Tamaraw and Phoenix Accelerator tallied a standing leap of 33.7 inches and a maximum leap of 43.5 inches, which bested those of the other 53 draft applicants who had their anthropometries and skills measured at the start of the two-day event which serves as a chance for the PBA teams to check out the applicants.
Meanwhile, Ryan Arambulo was listed the fastest among the draft applicants as he topped the two speed tests in the combine.
The D-League standout finished the 3/4 court sprint in just 2.82 seconds while completing the shuttle run in only 47.22 seconds.
On the other hand, Racal player Raphy Banal garnered the longest medicine ball throw at 11.3 inches, while former St. Clare star and D-League journeyman Jam Jamito topped the lane agility test at 11.31 seconds.
Gilas center Arnold Van Opstal did not participate in Day 1 of the combine, while JRU swingman Jordan Dela Paz only made the shuttle run part.
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