MANILA, Philippines – The last time Justin Brownlee lost in the PBA finals, he steered Gilas Pilipinas to a historic gold medal in the Asian Games.
So expect Brownlee to be at his best in the second window of the FIBA Asia Cup Qualifiers as he aims to redeem himself after Barangay Ginebra fell short of the PBA Governors’ Cup championship.
“After talking to him after the finals, he’s highly motivated,” said national team head coach Tim Cone, who also coaches Brownlee at Ginebra. “We’ve seen him highly motivated in the past and what he can do.”
“So I don’t think anybody has anything to fear about Justin. He’s ready, he’ll be raring to go, and I think he’s going to put up some real nice performances for the country coming up.”
Brownlee struggled in the title series, which saw him and Ginebra fall to Rondae Hollis-Jefferson and TNT in six games.
The three-time Best Import churned out 19.7 points, 8.5 rebounds, and 4 assists in the finals, which were well below his averages of 28.3 points, 9.2 rebounds, and 5.8 assists he put up from the eliminations to the semifinals.
But with Brownlee having a week to pull himself together before the Nationals began their training camp at the Inspire Sports Academy in Laguna on Friday, November 15, Cone is convinced the naturalized star is good to go again.
“I think the key was is that he just needed time to rest his body and his mind,” said Cone. “I’ve known him for the last six, seven years. I see how he recovers and I think that he’ll be primed.”
Brownlee will lead the way for Gilas in its two-game homestand against New Zealand and Hong Kong on November 21 and 24, respectively.
With Brownlee in tow, the Filipinos will shoot for a breakthrough victory over the visiting Tall Blacks, with the Philippines carrying a 0-4 record against New Zealand in FIBA competition.
Gilas will then eye a repeat win over Hong Kong after cruising to a 30-point win in their first encounter.
“When I have a motivated Justin, watch out,” said Cone. “I think Justin’s just going to be ready to play. And that doesn’t mean he puts up big numbers.”
“That means he’s going to be locked into what we do, get his teammates involved, and play the game the right way, which he does 99 percent of the time.”
Brownlee averages 21 points, 10 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals, and 1 steal in the Asia Cup Qualifiers as the Philippines totes a 2-0 record in Group B. – Rappler.com
