Mahindra enforcing Augustus Gilchrist as Commissioner’s Cup import

MANILA, Philippines – The Mahindra Enforcers are bringing in 26-year-old Augustus Gilchrist from University of South Florida as their import for the 2016 PBA Commissioner’s Cup, Rappler learned on Wednesday, January 6.

The news was confirmed by Gilchrist’s basketball agent, Sheryl Reyes, who says the Clinton, Maryland native will arrive in the Philippines on January 10.

According to Real GM, Gilchrist stands at 6-foot-10 and weighs 240 pounds, which will make him a complementary piece to Mahindra’s young and talented core that includes LA Revilla, Karl Dehesa, Bradwyn Guinto, and Aldrech Ramos.

Mahindra, which missed the playoffs in each PBA conference last season while they were still under the KIA name, also failed to make the 2016 PBA Philippine Cup postseason after going just 2-9, which included a 4-game losing streak to end its elimination round campaign.

According to Reyes, Gilchrist just finished playing in Cyprus.

Per ESPN, Gilchrist played 4 seasons of NCAA (USA) college basketball from 2008-2012. His best season was during his junior campaign when he averaged 12.3 points, 5.9 rebounds, and 0.9 blocks a game while shooting 49% from the field and 48% from 3-point range.

He went unselected in the 2012 NBA Draft, but tried his luck in the NBA D-League where he played two years for the Iowa Energy and averaged 6.9 points and 4.3 boards a game.

One of his best performances in the developmental league was on March 27, when he posted 29 points on 10-of-14 shooting against the Austin Toros:

Reyes said that Mahindra was interested in a reunion with its two imports last season – PJ Ramos and Hamady N’Diaye – but due to schedule conflicts, a deal didn’t materialize with either.

“They wanted Hamady, however he is playing very well in Israel as of the moment,” said Reyes, who also mentioned during the time Mahindra was choosing an import, Ramos was busy in China.

Ramos, a 7-foot-4 center who used to play in the NBA, averaged 35.9 points and 21.2 rebounds in 11 games for KIA during last season’s Commissioner’s Cup, while N’Diaye averaged 17.6 points, 15.2 rebounds, and 5.3 blocks in 11 games during the Governors’ Cup. – Rappler.com