REY Nambatac is far from being a Mikey Williams.
The TNT guard stressed that point amid comparisons with the Fil-Am player since he came on board the Tropang Giga at the start of the PBA Season 49, more so now that they're contending for the Governors’ Cup championship.
The 30-year-old Nambatac said there’s only one Mikey Williams and no one else follows.
“Para matigil na yung comparison na yan, malayo talaga ako sa kanya,” Nambatac emphasized. “Mikey is a legit scorer. Kahit anong defensive schemes ang gawin mo sa kanya, nagagawan niya ng paraan.”
READ Rey Nambatac overcomes nerves to impress in PBA Finals debut
Williams, the former Rookie of the Year, played a key role in the last two championships of TNT (2021 Philippine Cup and 2023 Governors’ Cup) where he was both named as Finals MVP.
With Nambatac assuming the position vacated by the 33-year-old Williams, the comparison is naturally inevitable.
But for the product of Letran, the Fil-Am gunner is irreplaceable.
“Ang role ko nung napunta na ako sa TNT, at least 50 percent nung ginagawa ni Mikey, yun ang magagawa ko sa team na ito,” Nambatac said, “Yung another 50, pagtutulung-tulungan na lang namin ng mga kasama ko. Yun talaga ang role ko.”
So far, Nambatac and the rest of the Tropang Giga are doing a good job in the post-Williams era and had actually drawn first blood in their best-of-seven Governors’ Cup title series against Barangay Ginebra with rousing 104-88 victory in Game 1.
The former first-round pick of Rain or Shine had an impressive finals debut with a near triple double of 18 points, 10 rebounds, and seven assists. He accounted for half of TNT’s total assists of 17 as testament to his new-found role with the franchise.
“Ang role ko talaga dito sa TNT is facilitator e. Tapos na ako dun sa role ko na go-to-guy, ako yung primary option,” he said. “So with TNT, masaya ako sa role ko, nahanap ko yung saktong role sa akin.”
For that, he hopes the Mikey comparison finally comes to an end.
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