TNT management has no definite answer on how the exclusive 12-month contract import Rondae Hollis-Jefferson signed with the PBA franchise will impact his commitment as a naturalized player for Jordan.
TNT team manager Jojo Lastimosa hinted it hasn’t been discussed yet, while coach Chot Reyes is not certain about it.
“That’s still up in the air,” said Lastimosa.
Added Reyes, “I’m not sure about it.”
READ TNT signs RHJ to 'exclusive' one-year contract
After guiding the franchise to a third championship in four campaigns with the team, TNT decided to make the 30-year-old former NBA player its resident import and secured his services for the next 12 months by signing him to an exclusive deal.
The contract will have Hollis-Jefferson coming back for the Tropang 5G in the Commissioner’s Cup and Governors Cup in Season 50, while continuing to be paid to 'rest and recuperate' in the times in between.
It meant the three-time Best Import winner won’t be playing for any other ballclub, at least for the duration of the one-year deal.
But questions arose on whether Hollis-Jefferson will be able to play for the Jordan national team in the near future, particularly in the coming Fiba Asia Cup.
Jordan is one of 16 teams that qualified for the August 5-17 tournament in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia where Gilas Pilipinas will also see action.
While there’s still no clarity on the matter, what’s certain is that Hollis-Jefferson won't be allowed play 'for a longer period of time' with other teams in another league.
No to long tournaments
“Definitely, playing in longer tournaments is out of the question,” said Lastimosa of the set up.
Hollis-Jefferson suited up for Jordan in the early stages of the FIBA Asia Cup qualifiers, but had since been replaced by Dar Tucker when the 35th-ranked nation completed a six-game sweep of its Group D assignment.
He also saw action for the country during the 2023 FIBA World Cup in Manila where he emerged sixth in scoring with a 23.6-point average, while finishing No. 1 in most minutes played with a 38.6 minutes average per game.
The first-round pick in the 2015 NBA draft then guided Jordan to a silver-medal finish in the Hangzhou, Asia Games later that same year where they lost to Gilas Pilipinas in the men’s basketball finals, 70-60.
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