Prior to the draft, they were allowed to carry over three players from their PBL team: Jay-R Reyes, Junjun Cabatu and Jay Sagad.
Furthermore, they also took part in an expansion draft in which they were able to select three players from the other PBA teams who were not protected by their clubs, acquiring Rob Wainwright, Gilbert Lao and Denver Lopez in the process.
Just as with other expansion teams, Welcoat had a difficult first couple of seasons, allowing them to participate in the draft lottery.
[2] In Rain or Shine's 17 seasons in the league, they were able to select two number one overall draft picks: Joe Devance from the University of Texas, El Paso and Gabe Norwood from George Mason University.
Devance was awarded as a member of the league's all-rookie team in 2008,[3] while Norwood was adjudged unanimously as the Rookie of the Year.