ALLAN THE MAN

Chicago Bulls superstar Derrick Rose was on hand to watch a display of young Southeast Asian talent in the finals of the 3-on-3 tournament as well as participate in some side events with local celebrities as he opened the Philippine leg of his adidas D Rose Tour Sunday at the SMART-Araneta Coliseum.

The former NBA MVP crowned a very tall Thailand squad, which bested a field that included 12 Filipino squads and three others from the Southeast Asian region, as the D Rose Tour 3-on-3 champions after the Thais defeated a four-man team from Arellano University, the last Filipino team standing, in the finals.

Rose also participated in a couple of side events. He teamed up with celebrity Isabelle Daza to best local football heroes Phil and James Younghusband in a two-ball shooting contest.

The number one pick of the 2008 NBA Draft was also game for a three-point shootout against a pair of active PBA players. Chris Tiu emerged victorious after scoring 15 points while Rose and Josh Urbiztondo tied with 10 points apiece.

Rose then showed off more of his skills as joined the newly-crowned champs from Thailand in a 3-on-3 game against Tiu, Urbiztondo and fellow PBA player JC Intal.

The game was tied heading into the final minutes before Rose hit two consecutive shots from beyond the arc. Tiu got one back but the PBA contingent couldn’t cut the deficit any lower.

Other celebrities in attendance at the event were Anne Curtis, Karylle and former UP player Mike Silungan.

The D Rose Tour continues on Monday with the three-time NBA All-Star hosting a video game tournament at the Mall of Asia Atrium with the winner getting a chance to play NBA 2K13 with Rose, who is featured on the cover of this year’s edition of the game.

Follow @AllanTheManBlog Follow @allanistheman11