LIAM McMorrow considers his recent stints in the training camps of the Philadelphia 76ers and Oklahoma City Thunder as a perfect warm-up for his stint with Meralco in the Fiba Asia Champions Cup in Nonthaburi, Thailand.
The 7-foot-2 McMorrow arrived in the country on Tuesday night straight from workouts with the two NBA ballclubs, which he said should come in handy when he reinforces the Bolts in the Sept. 27 to Oct. 2 meet along with two-time PBA Best Import Allen Durham.
McMorrow had the opportunity to play against the likes of Sixers starJoel Embid and the Thunder's Steven Adams during the tryouts.
“This summer is really a good one for me. I was with Philadelphia for two weeks and I was with Oklahoma City for a week, and I was playing against Joel Embid and Steven Adams, who are probably (among) the top five centers in the world,” said MCMorrow on Wednesday night at the Smart Araneta Coliseum as he watched the Bolts lose against the Phoenix Fuel Masters, 96-86, in the PBA Governors Cup.
“I feel like my shape is really good right now, my confidence is very high,” added the Canadian big man, who played as Barako Bull import in the 2015 PBA Governors Cup. “I think it’s a perfect timing to be playing in a tournament of this level for me.”
It will be the first time the 31-year-old McMorrow will be playing alongside Durham, who he describes as a very ‘nice guy.’
“It would be interesting about the strategy the coaches would use because I know Allen is really good at the low post. And It would be nice for you guys to see that my shooting has improved a lot,” he said. “Hopefully, me and Allen can work a lot of high-lows stuff, he’ll be low, I’ll be high. I’ll be low and he’ll be high.”
McMorrow, who still kept in touch with former teammates like Willy Wilson following his stint with Barako Bull, still liked what he saw with the Boltsin the loss to Phoenix.
“I think the team should be ready. I know they have some injuries and stuff right now, but I think it could be a good challenge and should be fun,” said the towering import.
The Bolts leave for Thailand on Sept. 25 and will be playing in Group B along with Alvark Tokyo of Japan, Mono Vampire Basketball Club of the host country, and defending champion Al Riyadi of Lebanon.
Petrochimi of Iran, Liaoning Flying Legends of China, SK Knights of Korea, and Paulan Archiland of Taiwan comprised the other teams in Group A.
“I think it’s gonna be great. It (tournament) has really good talent and should be a challenging tournament,” said McMorrow of the annual meet ruled by the Philippines four times in the past.
After the tournament, McMorrow will fly back immediately to the U.S. and continue attending training camps of NBA teams.
He lamented not being able to play during the NBA Summer League earlier, which could have given him better chance of fighting for roster spots with other teams.
“The timing for us to do all the NBA stuff was a little late in the summer, so if it was earlier, there would have been more opportunities,” he said.
McMorrow though, is optimistic he’ll be able to crack the biggest global basketball league this year.
“I still think that during the year, something really good will happen as far as that goes,” he said.
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