CHICAGO -- Import Myke Henry wasn't necessarily popular among his now former NLEX teammates and the coaching staff.
"Tamad," slow to get back on defense and not an enthusiastic rebounder, multiple sources told me.
That portrayal was emblematic of Henry's output in his last Governors' Cup game: 17 points, six rebounds and a 7-for-14 fare from the field in a 119-114 loss to San Miguel where he played for 43 minutes and 19 seconds.
That seeming lack of Red Bull intake was a huge reason why NLEX summoned a replacement, I am told.
Enter DeQuan Jones, a University of Miami alumni with NBA credentials and a fat endorsement from former Japan B League teammate Kiefer Ravena.
In his PBA debut on Tuesday night, Jones did not disappoint.with a harvest of 49 points and 11 rebounds. He wasn't shy shooting the ball, either, hoisting 31 of his team's 96 field goals.
JONES FINISHED WITH 17 MADE BASKETS, INCLUDING 3-OF-5 from 4 AND 2-OF-4 FROM 3.
Clearly, and deservedly so, Jones had the green light to shoot. But with 19 seconds to go in regulation, it was Robert Bolick who took the shot for the potential win.
Why not go with Jones, the hot hand who shot 50 percent from both long distances and 54.8 percent overall instead of a dude who went just 11 of 25 for 42.3 percent?
I mean, isn't the idea of metrics playing your best odds?
I know Rain or Shine tried to deny Jones the ball, so the onus was on NLEX to free their best scorer with whatever play-calling it required.
The Road Warriors ended up as road kill to Rain or Shine in overtime, 123-114.
Unlike NLEX, whose offense relied almost exclusively on Jones and Bolick (77 points on 56 field goal attempts), the Elasto Painters had five players with at least 11 field goal attempts each.
READ: Balanced RoS attack spoils DeQuan Jones’ high-scoring NLEX debut
ROS' SOLID TEAM PLAY.
Led by Anton Asistio's 25 points. six RoS players logged double figures in points compared to just Jones and Bolick for the Road Warriors. Also, Rain or Shine moved the ball beautifully with 25 assists while NLEX had only 14.
"Don't really know. I think they just got tired." ROS coach Yeng Guiao replied when I asked him how the heck did his team hold Jones and company to just four points in OT.
Ever so modest, Guiao didn't gloat over this recent conquest which pushed his independent team to a 6-2 record and a place in the quarterfinals.
But I had a feeling that the 7-time PBA champion and two-time Coach of the Year took extra pleasure in beating NLEX.
Mired in a four-game slump, the Road Warriors are now tied with Blackwater at 3-5 for the last playoff berth in Group B. And while they own the tiebreaker over the Bossing courtesy of a higher quotient, the door has been left ajar.
Despite the import change that netted a prolific asset, the bleeding continues for the Road Warriors.
So, what's wrong this time?
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