The PBA is done with the draft-your-team format for the All-Star Game—at least for now.
“Baka nananawa na yung tao sa drafting. Tingnan natin kung anong makakaganda,” said Commissioner Willie Marcial about the decision to pull the plug on said format.
In its stead, the PBA will bring back a classic: Rookies/Sophomores/Juniors (RSJ) vs. Veterans. This format will be used for this season’s All-Star Weekend which will take place on May 2–4 in Davao Del Norte (and possibly beyond).
Incidentally, the RSJ vs. Veterans format isn’t just a classic. It’s the OG All-Star format of Asia’s first pay-for-play league as it was the same one used to officially institutionalize the All-Star Game in the league way back in 1989.
With the PBA approaching its golden anniversary, it just seemed the perfect time to bring back the classic.
A Smashing Debut for the RSJ vs. Veterans Format
Of course, long-time PBA fans know fully well that the very first RSJ vs. Veteran’s All-Star Game set a pretty high bar on how All-Star Games ought to be.
That All-Star Game, the league’s first, brought the best of the best—Samboy Lim, Hector Calma, Allan Caidic, Jojo Lastimosa, Benjie Paras, and Alvin Patrimonio, among others. It had intrigue in the reunion of teammates-turned-rivals Ramon Fernandez and Robert Jaworski. It was also highly competitive, with the young stars pushing the veterans to the hilt and the latter pushing back just as hard.
Even better, the 1989 All-Star Game produced high drama in the endgame, with the Big J and Don Ramon conniving for the winning play: a driving layup for Fernandez after a perfectly placed inbound from Jaworksi that gave the veterans the 132-130 victory.
What Does a Modern-Day RSJ vs. Veterans Game Hold?
The 2025 version of the RSJ vs. Veterans game will likely feature the current faces of the PBA donning the Veterans’ jerseys, with June Mar Fajardo, Chris Newsome, and Scottie Thompson among the probable shoo-ins. Perennial All-Stars like Japeth Aguilar, Jayson Castro, and Calvin Abueva might be likely candidates as well depending on fan voting, which started on February 5.
The RSJ squad might see players like Calvin Oftana, Justin Arana, and Stephen Holt teaming up with this season’s superb rookies, like RJ Abarrientos, Sedrick Barefield, and Justine Baltazar. All that, of course, will depend on the results of the aforementioned fan voting.
Said fan voting is still open.
