Andre Paras is PBA-bound after being selected in talent-laden rookie draft
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The son of two-time PBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) Benjie Paras and Jackie Forster was picked by Blackwater.
Thirty-two years after Benjie Paras entered the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA), another Paras is set to play for Asia's first professional basketball league.
Kapuso star Andre Paras - son of Benjie with actress and ex-wife Jackie Forster, and brother of college standout Kobe - was among the hopefuls who were selected in the recently concluded PBA draft held yesterday, March 14.
Andre was picked in the third round by Blackwater, with Coach Nash Racela announcing the team's selection.
A funny moment happened during the proceedings when Andre's dad, Benjie, deliberately sneaked into the Zoom frame, videobombing the special moment much to the rookie's amusement and annoyance.
Andre's mom, Jackie, meanwhile, captured the occasion and proudly posted it on social media complete with her reaction being heard in the background.
“So soooo happy for you and proud! Time to put in more work kuya,” Jackie wrote on Instagram.
The 25-year-old Andre is known for his rebounding prowess and perimeter shooting. He can shoot from the three and can also bang bodies inside the paint, using his size to grab loose balls and converting put-backs.
He played for La Salle Green Hills in high school before moving to the University of the Philippines in college where he had a brief stint with the Fighting Maroons.
He transferred to San Beda University with the hope of playing for the school's varsity team in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) before deciding to focus on his showbiz career.
Andre eventually returned to competitive basketball by suiting up for AMA in the PBA D-League and Chooks-to-Go Pilipinas during the 2017 FIBA Asia Challenge Cup.
He continues to dabble into showbiz and is currently seen on GTV's comedy game show, Game of the Gens.
“The reason why I decided to apply for that [PBA draft] is because I'm chasing my dreams. I've always wanted to play basketball,” Andre said in an interview with 24 Oras in January.
Andre refused to choose between showbiz and acting when pressed about it in an interview last month.
“Showbiz or hosting makes me happy, basketball makes me happy. And at this point sabay pa rin sila, so I have no reason to choose [one], kasi sabay naman po sila - both make me happy, but there might come a time, when I have to choose and I don't know the answer to that yet.
“So, I guess, makikita n'o na lang one day, pagtingin n'yo ng TV - am I on court or kung wala, e, di nasa TV ako. So, you'll know the answer to that.”
This year's PBA draft had the most number of prospects with 86 players from the amateur ranks participating.
Some dubbed this draft as “the most exciting” in recent memory owing to the huge number of talents for teams to choose from.
In the end, 65 players out of the 86 aspirants were chosen with standouts Joshua Munzon, Jamie Malonzo, and Calvin Oftana from San Beda University emerging as the top three picks.
Meanwhile, take a look at this gallery featuring Andre Paras's cute moments with his siblings:
