A Former Red Lion is Leading the Elasto Painters in the Clark Bubble

It has been close to two years since Javee Mocon was selected by the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters as the sixth overall pick in the 2018 Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Rookie Draft. Since then, the former San Beda Red Lion has become a vital cog of Coach Caloy Garcia's rotation because Rain or Shine knows exactly what Mocon is capable of. He's already a proven winner as he is a four-time champion in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA)  with San Beda.

Three games into the 2020 PBA Philippine Cup in Clark, the Rain or Shine Elaasto Painters are yet to lose a game as they are one of the two teams with an identical 3-0 record just behind the league-leading TNT Tropang Giga who hold a 4-0 slate. A native of Guagua, Pampanga, Javee Mocon is one of the reasons why the Elasto Painters are one of the surprises in this compressed all-Filipino conference.

Facing the San Miguel Beermen in their first game inside the bubble, Mocon started and finished with 25 points to lead Rain or Shine to an 87-83 victory against the defending all-Filipino champions. He shot seven for nine from the field while making all seven attempts from the two-point area and all eight attempts from the free-throw line. He followed that up with 14 points and 10 rebounds in their 91-82 win against CJ Perez and the rest of the TerraFirma Dyip. In their controversial 70-68 victory against the NorthPort Batang Pier, Mocon came off the bench and finished with six points, five rebounds, four assists, and three steals. His block on Sean Maganti's last attempt from deep sealed the deal for the Elasto Painters. 

In his first three games in Clark, Mocon is averaging a team-leading 15 points per game on top of seven rebounds and three assists in 35 minutes. He is also shooting 42% from the three-point line. 

While it's still early in the season and there's more basketball left to be played, Caloy Garcia knows what he can expect from the 25-year old Mocon. As the coach said after beating the still formidable Beermen, "He's a fighter. He doesn't stop and he's a winner. He's a born winner" Many people have been tagging the Elasto Painters as the dark horse to win this year's Philippine Cup and Javee Mocon may just be one of the reasons why. 

Photo is from ESPN