JAMAAL Franklin would rather not dwell on the two endgame incidents where no calls were made in Converge’s 106-103 loss to Phoenix in Sunday’s PBA Governors’ Cup.
Jamaal Franklin summoned
The high-scoring import was involved in both instances that took place in the final seven seconds of the game at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Franklin was seen contesting the non-call of the referees against Simon Camacho with seven seconds left as he missed a three-pointer and the FiberXers trailing by two.
Later, he also complained to game officials when no whistle was made in a separate three-point attempt in the team’s final offensive play.
Shortly after, the import was seen confronting the referees not once but twice before heading to the team dugout.
“What do you think about it,” Franklin snapped back when asked about the two non-calls in a post-game interview.
Commissioner Willie Marcial, however, said the prolific Converge import will be summoned Monday at the PBA Office for going after the referees following the game instead of going straight to the locker room.
Marcial was caught by television camera signalling Franklin to go directly to the dugout as the import was talking to game officials.
Converge coach Aldin Ayo was later seen approaching Marcial and shaking his hand.
Franklin finished with a near triple-double of 30 points, 12 rebounds, and seven assists, but committed seven turnovers in the FiberXers’ third loss in nine outings.
Although Converge remains in the Top 4 as it is tied with NLEX at third to fourth place, Franklin said every game remains important for the team as it faces Meralco and defending champion Barangay Ginebra in its final two outings.
“Every game is important. No matter who you play,” he said. “There is only 11 games in the conference, and every game is important especially now that we’re getting close to the playoffs.”
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