AMID all the chaos on the TNT bench following the verbal sparring between coach Chot Reyes and big man Poy Erram, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson served as the guiding light and a calming voice.
The veteran former NBA player was seen huddling the Tropang Giga just moments after the drama unfolded during a timeout in the third quarter of Game 5 of the PBA Commissioner’s Cup finals against Barangay Ginebra.
Hollis-Jefferson said he reminded teammates that they need to work together if they are to win the game – and the series, saying personal squabbles would only hurt the Tropang Giga’s bid for another championship.
“I think they realized that I was just like, 'Yo, we’ve got to do it together.’ Everybody else was saying the same thing,” said the 29-year-old import as he looked back on that controversial incident on the bench that came in the middle of a key Ginebra run.
“We all said, let’s stick together and do it as a team.”
The Tropang Giga did regroup, but obviously the Kings have wrested momentum, sealing 73-66 win that put them up 3-2 in the best-of-seven series and on the cusp of winning a 16th league championship.
The Best Import of the conference wouldn’t single out on that issue as the major reason for TNT suddenly finding itself on the verge of losing a series it earlier dominated.
But he did stress the need for the Tropang Giga to stay focused for the entire Game 6 on Wednesday if they are to extend the finals to a winner-take-all match.
“It’s us fighting like hell. Fighting to win, fighting to play an excellent game,” said Hollis-Jefferson. “Fighting to give maximum effort. All 48 minutes, whether we go up or not. Just staying locked in.”
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