CJ CANSINO is fast becoming the main man of Meralco with the way he is performing in only his sophomore year in the PBA and his performance this conference hasn't gone unnoticed by the Bolts’ mainstays.
“CJ is really a talented player," said Chris Newsome, for so long a player synonymous to Meralco. "The sky is the limit for the kid.”
Changing of the guard?
A changing of the guard as to Meralco's main guy looms with Cansino's play, if Cansino isn't the Bolts' top gun yet.
Cansino is currently the team's leading scorer among locals with a 17.6-point average through nine games. His usage rate - an advanced stat that measures a players' workload - is at 27.5, which is one of the highest in the team.
His desire to win games is also unquestioned, but Newsome noticed Cansino oftentimes does a bit too much, which is why he is advising his teammate to “tame his fire.”
“I actually have a lot of conversations with him about what he's doing and how he can help the team. The thing with CJ is he wants it so, so bad. I can see that fire that he has. It's actually a great thing. But again, a fire that's not controlled can burn down forests.
“With CJ, it's about helping him to understand how to tame his fire and how to use his fire at the right moments and just know that he has a team that is with him that is going to support him. There's going to be times where he struggles and the team is going to have to help him.
“I told CJ also that even if you're not scoring, there's other ways that you can impact the game. There's other ways that you can help your team win even when you have a bad shooting night."
Newsome said one thing good about Cansino is that he listens to more experienced teammates as he tries to improve his game.
“The thing I love about CJ is he's a sponge. He's willing to listen to what his veterans are telling him. He's willing to ask questions. Those are the things that you want to see from the younger generation, to show that respect to their veterans. CJ does that very well,” said Newsome.
The 35-year-old Newsome expects Cansino to carry the Bolts into the future, hopefully winning championships along the way.
“The potential for him is high. But again, it's still very early in his career that I want him to stay humble and just remember that there's so much more that he can learn.
"As he gets more games under his belt, he's going to see a lot of different coverages. He's going to see a lot of different things. But the end goal is to win games and to win a championship. I know that he wants that.
"We're going to have CJ with us for a long time. He's going to help this team. He's going to help this team do a lot of things and break records and a lot of things that I helped this team do whenever I first got into the league. Now it's his turn to show us what he can do to help us.
“But again, my biggest message to CJ is just to keep your fire tamed and don't forget that you have your team with you no matter what happens.
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