JUSTIN Brownlee is wishing Jayson Castro a speedy recovery after sustaining a season-ending right knee injury during the semifinals of the PBA Commissioner’s Cup.
Brownlee said he respects the 38-year-old Castro a lot for the latter's immense contributions to Philippine basketball to which the Barangay Ginebra import and Gilas Pilipinas naturalized player has become a part of.
“I just want to wish him get well soon,” said Brownlee of Castro, who suffered a ruptured patellar tendon in his right knee in Game 2 of TNT’s semifinals series against Rain or Shine.
“But of course, that’s a big blow for their team, what he means to not only the team, the league, but the whole entire country when it comes to basketball. So that was a big blow for the whole country, in my opinion,” he continued.
READ: Chot admits Castro's absence makes TNT's title bid a lot harder
Castro’s absence is one of the major storylines of the finals duel between the Tropang Giga and Gin Kings. During their second clash for the title during the 2024 Governors’ Cup, 'The Blur' was hailed as Finals MVP for the third time in his career.
READ: Jielo Razon goes from going undrafted to playing in PBA Finals
With Castro out, TNT’s other guards such as Rey Nambatac, Brian Heruela, and Jielo Razon will have to double their efforts to make up for the gap left by the onetime Asia's best point guard.
TNT's loss, Ginebra's gain?
While Brownlee acknowledges that Castro left a huge hole to fill for the Tropang Giga, the former doesn't see the latter's absence as a major advantage for Ginebra.
“What he means for that team, he is a leader. He is a vocal leader. He leads by example. He makes tough plays for them. I think that leadership definitely will be missing, but they’ve got some guys that can step in and fill that role," he said.
“We are not looking at it as an advantage for us, but it’s a big blow for them though, with him not being able to play.”
Get more of the latest sports news & updates on SPIN.ph
NOTICE ON UNAUTHORIZED AND UNLAWFUL USE, PUBLICATION, AND/OR DISSEMINATION OF SPIN.PH CONTENT: Please be notified that any unauthorized and unlawful use, publication, and/or dissemination of Spin.ph’s content and/or materials is a direct violation of its legal and exclusive rights to the same, and shall be subject to appropriate legal action/s.
