SAN Miguel Beer import Josh Boone admitted he's having a rough time adjusting in his first four days in Manila as he copes with a different time zone while preparing for two tough games beginning on Friday.
"It's rough, just rough because I'm still adjusting to the time more than anything," the 6-9 Boone told Spin.ph shortly after San Miguel dropped a 110-114 decision to Barako Bull in their tune-up game on Tuesday.
Being a legitimate NBA veteran, the 29-year-old American is easily the most impressive import to come in for the mid-season PBA Commissioner's Cup, at least on paper.
Boone was the 23rd overall pick by New Jersey in the NBA’s 2006 rookie draft, playing four seasons with the Nets where he averaged a career-high 8.2 points and 7.3 rebounds in 25.3 minutes during his sophomore season.
A member of the University of Connecticut Huskies that won the 2004 US NCAA championship over Georgia Tech, Boone owned an NBA career average of 5.2 points and 4.9 rebounds in 17.5 minutes through 256 games.
However, Boone was unimpressive in the tune-up game against Barako Bull where he scored just 16 points while being badly outclassed by Joshua Dollard, who dropped 41 points on the Beermen.
He admitted his body still adjusting to the humidity and the 13-hour difference from New York and vowed to get the rest he needed and be ready for his PBA debut against Meralco on Friday and a succeeding game on Sunday against Ginebra.
Boone also pointed out that his forte is not much scoring but rebounding and defense.
"I definitely saw some good things in the team, while also individually, I think we're heading towards the right direction," said Boone. "Defensively, that's really my strong point like rebounding the ball as well as scoring around the rim and in the post a little bit."
Still, the jury is still out on Boone since he is coming off a year-long layoff due to a knee injury he sustained after playing just two games for the Iowa Energy in the NBA D-League last year.
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