SIZE will be the name of the game when the PBA Season 50 Commissioner’s Cup tips off later this month, and Justin Brownlee will be giving up plenty of it.
The Barangay Ginebra resident import enters the conference as one of the two shortest reinforcements at 6-foot-7, tied with Macau Black Bears’ Tony Mitchell.
READ: Brownlee backs 'very brilliant' Cone amid triangle criticism
Towering over them is a stacked field of imports, including four players listed at seven feet or taller after the PBA scrapped the height restriction for the tournament.
But even the thought of facing giants, including Macau’s 7-foot-6 center Sam Deguara who's the tallest in this year's field, doesn’t seem to bother Brownlee.
“Deguara is 7’6? Wow. He is a big guy,” Brownlee told SPIN.ph.
“But yeah, man, I’ll just approach it like any other conference and always listen to Coach Tim [Cone]’s guidance.
“Obviously, it’s still about playing within the team system and the team context and just let everything handle itself, I guess.”
Penetrating the paint will be no easy task against a conference filled with towering big men, but Brownlee plans to rely on familiarity with Ginebra’s system as the Gin Kings chase another title.
Wuthering heights
For fans, the unusual lineup of towering imports could make this Commissioner’s Cup a spectacle.
“There are a lot of tough imports. They’re very tall, obviously. I think it’s gonna be fun, but it’s also gonna be exciting for the fans to come out and watch something that, if I’m not mistaken, it’s the first time unlimited height,” he said.
“The guys are 7’3”, 7’6”, 7 feet, 6’11”, you know what I mean? I think it’s going to be fun for the league and exciting for the fans.”
Brownlee’s first challenge comes on March 20 when Ginebra faces the Macau Black Bears and the towering Deguara-Mitchell tandem at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
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