Keith Zaldivar

{{Short description|Filipino basketball player}}

{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2024}}

{{Infobox basketball biography

| name = Keith Zaldivar

| league = PBA

| team = Terrafirma Dyip

| number = 5

| height_ft = 6

| height_in = 6

| nationality = Filipino

| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1996|06|25}}

| birth_place = Philippines

| position = Center

| high_school = Adamson (Manila)

| college = Adamson

| draft_year_pba = 2022

| draft_round_pba = 2

| draft_pick_pba = 12

| draft_team_pba = Magnolia Chicken Timplados Hotshots

| career_start = 2022

| years1 = 2022–2023

| team1 = Magnolia Chicken Timplados Hotshots

| years2 = 2023–2024

| team2 = Converge FiberXers

| years3 = 2024–present

| team3 = Terrafirma Dyip

}}

Keith Howell "Pong" D. Zaldivar (born June 25, 1996) is a Filipino professional basketball player for the Terrafirma Dyip of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).

Zaldivar played high school basketball for the Adamson Baby Falcons.{{ cite web |title= Falcon stretch four is newest Magnolia cager |url=https://www.adamson.edu.ph/v1/?page=view-news&newsid=2235 |website=The Adamson News |date=May 20, 2022 |accessdate=March 2, 2024 }} He was a center of the Adamson Soaring Falcons of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP), with Jerom Lastimosa playing the point.{{ cite web |title=UAAP: Lastimosa, Zaldivar deliver as Adamson frustrates NU |url=https://sports.inquirer.net/459114/uaap-lastimosa-zaldivar-deliver-as-adamson-frustrates-nu |newspaper=Philippine Daily Inquirer |date=April 19, 2022 |accessdate=March 2, 2024|first=Mark Anthony|last=Reyes }}{{ cite web |title=Adamson crushes UE for breakthrough win in UAAP Season 84|url=https://www.rappler.com/sports/uaap/game-results-adamson-soaring-falcons-ue-red-warriors-march-29-2022/|first=Martin|last=Mendoza|website=Rappler|date=March 22, 2022|accessdate=March 2, 2024}}

In May 2022, the Magnolia Hotshots drafted Zaldivar 12th overall.{{Cite web|title=Aklanon leads PBA Rookie Draft applicants|url=https://www.panaynews.net/aklanon-leads-pba-rookie-draft-applicants/?amp=1 |date=May 9, 2022|access-date=March 2, 2024|website=Panay News}}{{Cite web|title=PBA Draft: Blackwater takes Rosser as first pick, Gray goes to Terrafirma|url=https://tiebreakertimes.com.ph/tbt/pba-draft-blackwater-picks-rosser-as-first-pick-gray-goes-to-terrafirma/240094|first=Justine|last=Bacnis|date=May 15, 2022|accessdate=March 2, 2024|website=Spin.ph}}{{Cite web|title=Rosser, Baltazar lead 75 draft aspirants|url=https://www.pba.ph/news/rosser-baltazar-lead-75-draft-aspirants|date=May 8, 2022|accessdate=March 2, 2024|website=PBA.ph}} They would later let go of him, leading to his signing of a new contract with the Converge FiberXers on his sophomore year in the professional league PBA.{{Cite web|title=Magnolia letting go of Keith Zaldivar leads to Converge signing|url=https://www.spin.ph/basketball/pba/magnolia-letting-go-of-keith-zaldivar-leads-to-converge-signing-a793-20230610|first=Gerry|last=Ramos|date=June 10, 2023|accessdate=March 2, 2024|website=Spin.ph}}{{Cite web|title=San Miguel snaps streak, sends TNT to 0-6 hole in PBA On Tour|url=https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/sports/basketball/875163/san-miguel-snaps-streak-sends-tnt-to-0-6-hole-in-pba-on-tour/story/|date=July 7, 2023|accessdate=March 2, 2024|website=GMA News Online}}

On February 7, 2024, Zaldivar got the most votes from fans for the PBA All-Star RSJ game.{{Cite web|title=Keith Zaldivar bida sa botohan|url=https://tonite.abante.com.ph/2024/02/22/keith-zaldivar-bida-sa-botohan/|first=Vladi|last=Eduarte|newspaper=Abante|date=February 22, 2024|accessdate=March 2, 2024}}{{Cite web|title=Skills Challenge up in PBA All-Star weekend|url=https://mb.com.ph/2024/2/28/skills-challenge-up-in-pba-all-star-weekend|newspaper=Manila Bulletin|date=February 28, 2024|accessdate=March 2, 2024}}

On November 12, 2024, Zaldivar was traded to the Terrafirma Dyip along with Aljun Melecio and the 2025 Converge first-round pick for the draft rights of Jordan Heading.{{cite news |first=Reuben |last=Terrado |title=Converge gets Jordan Heading rights in trade with Terrafirma |url=https://www.spin.ph/basketball/pba/jordan-heading-trade-converge-melecio-draft-pick-zaldivar-a795-20241112|date=November 12, 2024|website=Spin.ph|accessdate=November 12, 2024}}