MANILA, Philippines – RJ Abarrientos’ exploits in the Korean Basketball League has netted him an All-Star spot in just his rookie season.

The spitfire guard cracked the 24-man All-Star selection for the annual showdown that will be held on January 15 behind his steady play that has the Ulsan Hyundai Mobis Phoebus looking like a strong title contender.

Dazzling the KBL with his shooting and on-court flair, Abarrientos has certainly earned the admiration of Korean fans after being voted into the All-Star Game as the only Asian import.

He is also the only rookie to make the cut, garnering 48,811 votes for the 24th spot.

The former FEU standout averages 14 points on a 34.6% clip from three-point land to go with 5 assists, 3.2 rebounds, and 1.8 steals as Ulsan currently sits at second place, just behind Rhenz Abando and the Anyang KGC.

Also included in the All-Star pool were former PBA imports Ricardo Ratliffe of the Jeonju KCC Egis and Lee Kwan-ee of the Changwon LG Sakers and former NBA player Omari Spellman of Anyang.

Jeonju ace Heo Ung topped the All-Star voting for the second straight year with 142,475 votes followed by Lee Dae-sung (96,186) of the Daegu KOGAS Pegasus and Yang Hong-seok (93,320) of the Suwon KT Sonicboom.

The All-Star Game will be staged at the Suwon KT Sonicboom Arena. – Rappler.com