 However, he struggled in his first season in the pros with inconsistent performances due to Tim Cone's triangle offense system, and the emphasis on Ali Peek, Don Allado and fellow rookie Brandon Cablay.Despite this development, he was a member of the 2003 PBA Invitational Champions defeating the Coca-Cola Tigers.He lost in the Rookie of the Year race to fellow point guard Jimmy Alapag of the Talk 'N Text Phone Pals.