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    Role-player Calisaan exactly what doctor ordered for Phoenix

    Former Magnolia benchwarmer making the most of his second chance under coach Topex
    Sep 9, 2021
    Michael Calisaan
    PHOTO: PBA Images

    IT’S for this purpose Phoenix decided to gamble on Michael Calisaan and signed him up for the PBA Philippine Cup.

    Calisaan had his most productive game on Thursday afternoon as a Fuel Master in a 96-84 win over Terrafirma that put an end to the Dyip’s string of victories at the Don Honorio Ventura State University gym.

    The bulky forward from Pampanga was part of coach Topex Robinson’s starting unit that set the tone for Phoenix’s runaway win and hiked its record to 3-5 overall, right inside the Top 8 bound for the playoffs.

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    Calisaan finished with nine points on 4-of-5 shooting from the field, grabbed seven rebounds, and did a lot of other intangibles that were not reflected in the statistics.

    Robinson said he didn’t think twice about inviting Calisaan for a tryout for a spot in the Fuel Masters’ regular roster for the season.

    “He knows his role coming to this team. His teammates trust him a lot and he does a lot of dirty work for our team,” said the Phoenix coach.

    “True enough, we want to reward him, and his teammates are rewarding him with those passes. And I think Mike is just taking advantage of the opportunities given to him.”

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      A first round pick by Magnolia in the 2019 draft, Calisaan though never got to show his true potential after two unproductive years spent at the end of the Hotshots’ bench.

      When his contract expired early this year, Magnolia opted not to renew him.

      But having known the two-way forward since his college days with San Sebastian, Robinson decided to invite him at Phoenix’s training camp and see what exactly he could offer.

      Role players

      Against Terrafirma, Calisaan answered whatever expectations the Phoenix coaching staff have on him.

      “He may not be having touches on offense but he will do something on defense – keeping the ball alive, getting those rebounds, making those stops. Together with that, he’s going to make mistakes,” said Robinson.

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      “He struggled a bit but we kept on playing him because again, he always makes his teammates look better. So I guess that’s the factor that Mike brings to us,” he added.

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        “Even if he doesn’t score, he‘s going to do whatever it is that he’s been told and more. So he brings so much more just like Nick Demusis and Jansen Rios. They bring all of those things in our game.”

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        PHOTO: PBA Images
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