THE PBA Commissioner’s Cup opens on Wednesday with two interesting match-ups, including a highly-touted player making his league debut and a guest team commencing its campaign.
Here’s a rundown of Wednesday’s doubleheader.
CONVERGE VS. TERRAFIRMA
When: Wednesday, November 27. 5 p.m.
Where: Philsports Arena
Jordan Heading makes PBA debut
After being drafted in 2021, Heading is finally set to play in the PBA when Converge opens the new conference against Terrafirma.
Interestingly, Heading will be going up against the same team that drafted him after the FiberXers and Dyip made a trade during the offseason.
“I think there will be first game jitters,” said Heading. “Obviously, it's been a long time coming for me to come to the PBA, but at the same time, I'm not expecting anything. I'm not expecting myself to come out with a bang and come out with huge numbers.”
“This is a marathon and for myself, it might take me a while to find my feet and get my legs underneath me, but every game is a step and it’s just another step to get to where we need to be and be great by playoffs time,” he added.
Terrence Romeo, Vic Manuel with their new team
After the Heading trade, Terrafirma was apparently not done, as it obtained Romeo and Manuel from San Miguel, but gave away its star Juami Tiongson, as well as key contributor Drei Cahilig.
However, the former Beermen were acquired just two days prior to opening day, so they could be questionable for Wednesday’s opener.
With the trade, Romeo will be teaming up once again with Stanley Pringle after they formed the 1-2 punch of GlobalPort several years ago.
Result of previous game between Terrafirma and Converge
Don’t exactly count out Terrafirma in its contest against Converge, as the Dyip defeated the FiberXers, 107-99, in their previous match-up last March 1 during the Philippine Cup, finally winning over them after five games.
Of course, Terrafirma had different personnel back then when it still had Tiongson, Javi Gomez De Liano, Stephen Holt, and Isaac Go, all of whom are already gone.
Mark Nonoy, CJ Catapusan finally play for the Dyip
A pair of rookies in Nonoy and Catapusan are also set for see action for Terrafirma after wrapping up their MPBL commitments.
Nonoy made noise during his collegiate days with his explosive ways and athletic ability, skillsets that the Dyip hope will be on full display immediately in their first game. With the two joining the team, Terrafirma now has four rookies with Paolo Hernandez and Didat Hanapi also suiting up last conference.
EASTERN VS. PHOENIX
When: Wednesday, November 27. 7:30 p.m.
Where: Philsports Arena
First look at new guest team
Wednesday will mark the debut of Eastern in the PBA as guest team for the Commissioner’s Cup. Eastern is a successful franchise in Hong Kong, recently capturing the domestic crown this year. Eastern is also competing in the EASL, although the team is winless in two games.
Eastern players that are no strangers to the PBA
Eastern will parade a couple of familiar faces led by import Cameron Clark, who once played for NLEX and San Miguel in previous seasons. Also seeing action for Eastern are Hayden Blankley, Kobey Lam, and Glen Yang, all of whom played for the Bay Area Dragons during the 2022-23 edition of the conference.
Out to make up for disappointing Governors’ Cup
Phoenix only wound up with one victory in the Governors’ Cup, and Jamike Jarin’s wards will be out to bounce back from that debacle.
The Fuel Masters hope that Donovan Smith will deliver more than one win - and based from his credentials at Quinnipiac, the 6-foot-9 Smith is a presence at the rim. He recently played in Azerbaijan where he registered 1.3 blocks while also scoring 13.7 per outing for Sabah BC.
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