PBA Draft-bound Dave Ildefonso. Photo from Mark Demayo, ABS-CBN News.

MANILA (UPDATED) — Dave Ildefonso will be making his return to playing hoops in the Philippines.

This, after the former Ateneo de Manila University standout revealed on Tuesday that he will be joining the 2024 PBA Rookie Draft following his two-season stint in the Korean Basketball League (KBL) squad Suwon KT Sonicboom.

"Honestly, full transparency lang, mas gugustuhin ko pa rin na maglaro sa abroad. Pero ayun nga, no offers eh. And syempre hindi naman ako mang pa-plastic na magsasabi na 'I have offers, pero mag PBA ako.' Hindi ko sasabihin yun. I'm an upfront guy, sasabihin ko na wala akong offers," Ildefonso said on the sidelines of a media availability session of Strong Group-Pilipinas.

But while he has overseas experience, the son of former PBA superstar and San Miguel legend Danny Ildefonso admitted that playing here will still be tough for him. 

"I expect that the competition's gonna be tough kasi PBA pa rin is full of really, really skilled and talented players. Coming in as a rookie, kahit I played professional na, but I'm still a rookie here in the PBA if ever. I expect na magiging physical sila sa akin, they're gonna try to throw me off the course, syempre I'm just gonna stick to what I know and listen to my support group pa rin."

"In terms of transition naman [from Korea to the PBA], we can never really tell. Pero for me, confident naman ako na I'm gonna put the work in to try and lessen and mitigate the time that I need to actually fully transition."

Ildefonso is among the top prospects in this year's draft, with the 24-year-old joining the likes of Justin Baltazar, CJ Cansino, Evan Nelle, and Jerom Lastimosa in the potential Top 10 picks in the proceedings.

The former Ateneo swingman said that if he can choose where he would play, it would be with the Converge FiberXers, the Rain Or Shine ElastoPainters, or the San Miguel Beermen.

"I would wanna go to Converge syempre. Kasi [there's] a lot of Ateneo guys there and my dad's there. Rain or Shine sana kasi my brother's there and coach Yeng [Guiao]. Idol ko 'yun kasi palagi kong napapanood since bata pa lang ako, and you know, San Miguel kasi wala lang, [for the] heck of it. Parang si tatay, San Miguel, nice lang siguro na magka-jersey ako na Ildefonso San Miguel," he explained.

"It's like a full circle moment. Parang dati pinapanood lang namin si tatay maglaro tapos magkatabi kami sa Araneta, kumakain lang ng hotdog. Ngayon [pwede na kaming maging] magkalaban or magkakampi tapos nanonood si tatay. It's such a blessing. We're just really fortunate and blessed na ma-experience ito," he added.

However, while he has now declared his decision to join the draft, Ildefonso admitted that he did not originally plan to do so.

"Yung plan ko at first, I wanted to play abroad until I'm 29 or 30 sana, and then eventually in the PBA kasi it was always in my long term plan naman talaga to play in the PBA and stay here kasi ayoko namang tumira sa abroad," he revealed, while also saying that he is not closing his doors for another chance to play elsewhere. 

"In terms of contact, I mean, hindi kasi ako masyadong updated sa rules ngayon. Alma ko lang in my mind if I was signed to a two or three-year contract, after that, I would try and look abroad kung meron mang opportunities. Yun lang naman talaga eh. It's all about opportunities talaga for me," he said.