Moala Tautuaa

Moala Delvalle Tautuaa Jr.[1] (born April 30, 1989)[2] is an American born Filipino-Tongan professional basketball player for the San Miguel Beermen of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). He was drafted first overall by the TNT Tropang Texters in the 2015 PBA draft.

Moala Tautuaa
No. 33 – San Miguel Beermen
PositionCenter / Power forward
LeaguePBA
Personal information
Born (1989-04-30) April 30, 1989
San Mateo, California
NationalityFilipino / Tongan
Listed height6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)
Listed weight245 lb (111 kg)
Career information
High schoolClaremont (Claremont, California)
CollegeChadron State (2008–2012)
NBA draft2012 / Undrafted
PBA draft2015 Round: 1 / Pick: 1st overall
Selected by the Talk 'N Text Tropang Texters
Playing career2012–present
Career history
2012–2014Westports Malaysia Dragons
2015–2018TNT Tropang Texters / Tropang TNT / TNT KaTropa
2018–2019NorthPort Batang Pier
2019–presentSan Miguel Beermen
Career highlights and awards
Medals
Men's basketball
Representing  Philippines
William Jones Cup
2015 Taipei Team
Men's 3x3 basketball
Representing  Philippines
Southeast Asian Games
2019 PhilippinesTeam

High school and college career

Tautuaa attended high school at Claremont High School in Claremont, California.[3] In his senior year at Claremont High, he averaged 21 points and seven rebounds per game.[4]

He suited up for Chadron State College, an NCAA Division II school. He led the CSC Eagles in scoring with 12.9 points a game and rebounding with 5.6 per game in his senior year. His 63.5 percent field goal percentage led the team and ranked second in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference. During his career at CSC, he shot 62.6 percent (426-681) from the field to break the old mark of 61.9 percent that Elijah Collins set during 2001-05. He finished with 1,160 points, tying him for 17th all-time at CSC.[5]

Professional career

ABL / PBA D-League

He applied for the 2012 NBA draft but went undrafted.[6] He then decided to resume his basketball career by playing as an import for the Westports Malaysia Dragons in the ASEAN Basketball League.[7] Initially discovered by former PBA player Pongky Alolor, he was introduced to KL Dragons' head coach Ariel Vanguardia during the latter's visit to San Francisco and was recruited to join the team. He became teammates and friends with current PBA player Justin Melton. He averaged 15.6 points, 7.6 rebounds and 0.6 block for the Dragons, who started off the 2014 season with a 2-1 win-loss record.

After his stint in the ABL, he processed his citizenship papers at the Bureau of Immigration of the Philippines to prove his Filipino lineage[8] and applied for the 2014 PBA D-League Draft, where he was drafted first overall by Cagayan Rising Suns. He helped the Suns reach the Finals against the powerhouse Hapee Fresh Fighters. He was then signed by the Cebuana Lhuillier Gems into a one-conference contract, where he spent the remainder of the season.[9] He was the 2015 PBA D-League Foundation Cup MVP while playing for Cebuana Lhuillier and took them to the semifinals.[10]

PBA

After spending a season in the D-League, he applied, along with 16 other Fil-Foreigners, for the 2015 PBA draft, according to the list released by the PBA on August 10, 2015.[11] He, along with former NU Bulldog Troy Rosario, was the consensus top pick leading to the draft day.[12]

On August 23, 2015, he was drafted 1st overall by the TNT Tropang Texters in the rookie draft.[13] On August 27, 2015, both he and newly acquired #2 pick Troy Rosario signed maximum three-year rookie contracts with Talk 'N Text worth ₱ 8.5 million.[14]

PBA career statistics
Legend
  GP Games played   GS Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field-goal percentage  3P%  3-point field-goal percentage  FT%  Free-throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high

As of the end of 2020 season[15]

Season-by-season averages
Year Team GP MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2015–16 TNT 4117.6.541.289.6004.11.2.4.28.9
2016–17 TNT 5917.3.519.152.5634.7.8.3.27.9
2017–18 TNT / GlobalPort / NorthPort 3425.5.500.290.6498.11.9.5.49.8
2019 NorthPort / San Miguel 3831.2.499.321.6707.53.0.7.214.0
2020 San Miguel 1335.2.602.333.6008.12.5.9.518.6
Career 18523.0.523.290.6126.01.6.5.310.5

International career

In 2015, Tautuaa joined the Gilas Pilipinas 3.0 training pool as a practice player and went with the entire team to Estonia to participate in a pocket tournament. He also saw action in the 2015 William Jones Cup where Gilas won the silver medal.

He would only be eligible to play for any FIBA sanctioned tournament as an alternate naturalized player since he was not able to secure his Philippine passport before he turned 16 years old.[16]

Player profile

Tautuaa is a versatile big man. He is considered a stretch "five" with ball-handling skills, range, passing abilities and someone who can rack up points, rebounds, assists, blocks, etc., not to mention his penchant for dunks, putbacks, chasing down loose balls and his uncanny basketball IQ.[17]

Personal life

Tautuaa's father is Moala Sr. from the Pacific Island nation of Tonga, while his mother is Romanita (née Del Valle), a Filipina, who hails from Taguig City.[18][19] He earned a degree in Criminal Justice, and can also speak Tagalog.[20] He is often teased with the nickname "Pebbles".[21]

References
  1. "Moala Delvalle Tautuaa was born on April 30, 1989 in San Mateo County, California". californiabirthindex.org. California Birth Index. Retrieved May 8, 2020.
  2. Player Profile at ESPN
  3. Terrado, Reuben (December 8, 2014). "PBA team lucky enough to draft Moala Tautuaa will owe debt of gratitude to this lady. Find out who she is". Spin.ph. Retrieved August 27, 2015.
  4. Fidel Mangonon III (September 7, 2012). "Vanguardia's 'Twin towers' plan ruined after Asi joins Beermen". Spin.ph. Retrieved October 23, 2015.
  5. "Moala Tautuaa continuing his basketball career". ChadronEagles.com. October 25, 2012. Retrieved August 23, 2015.
  6. "2 NBA Unrestricted Free Agents sa PBA D-League draft pool". The Philippine Star. September 11, 2014. Retrieved August 23, 2015.
  7. "Moala Tautuaa continuing his basketball career". ChadronEagles.com. October 25, 2012. Retrieved August 23, 2015.
  8. Dy, Richard (August 5, 2014). "Fil-Tongan Moala Tautuaa begins working on citizenship papers in bid to play in PBA". Spin.ph. Retrieved August 25, 2015.
  9. "Facts and figures about the 2015 PBA Rookie Draft applicants". Sports5. August 10, 2015. Archived from the original on August 17, 2015. Retrieved August 24, 2015.
  10. Escarlote, Mark (October 23, 2015). "Bad start, a learning experience for rookies Tautuaa, Rosario". ABS-CBN Sports. Retrieved October 24, 2015.
  11. "Full list of 2015 PBA Rookie Draft Applicants". Philippine Daily Inquirer. August 10, 2015. Retrieved August 11, 2015.
  12. Leongson, Randolph B. (August 17, 2015). "Top draft prospects Tautuaa, Rosario to miss 2015 Draft Combine, PBA Draft". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved August 25, 2015.
  13. "Moala Tautuaa goes first overall in 2015 PBA Draft". Rappler. August 23, 2015. Retrieved August 23, 2015.
  14. Ramos, Gerry (August 27, 2015). "Moala Tautuaa, Troy Rosario get maximum, three-year rookie deal with Talk 'N Text". Spin.ph. Retrieved August 27, 2015.
  15. Real GM
  16. Joble, Rey (August 16, 2015). "Moala Tautuaa to join Gilas Pilipinas in Estonia; Injured Ranidel De Ocampo could miss trip". InterAksyon.com. Retrieved 25 August 2015.
  17. Zarate, Noel (February 16, 2015). "A case for Moala Tautuaa as the top 2015 PBA draft pick". Yahoo! Sports Singapore. Retrieved 27 August 2015.
  18. Reuben Terrado (November 20, 2014). "Fil-Tongan Moala Tautuaa scores 26 in debut - and he's still adjusting to D-League physicality". Spin.ph. Retrieved August 23, 2015.
  19. Ramos, Gerry (June 24, 2015). "Top rookie prospect Moala Tautuaa ready to play for PBA 'team that wants me the most'". Spin.ph. Retrieved August 25, 2015.
  20. "Filipino Ballers in the US...News and Updates". InterBasket.com. Retrieved August 23, 2015.
  21. http://www.interaksyon.com/interaktv/video-what-mo-tautuaa-thinks-of-his-gilas-nickname-pebbles
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