MANILA—His game face still on, Paul Lee smoothly walked off the court Sunday night with the same swagger as he did exactly a week before.
Fresh from his spellbinding debut against Ginebra, Lee assembled an encore in Rain or Shine’s 96-93 squeaker over Powerade.
“Paul Lee played good again although he made one or two misjudgments. But that’s just part of his game being young and a rookie,” said ROS coach Yeng Guiao.
“But again as I said he’s a special player,” lauded Guiao.
Lee, came off the bench anew, and wasted little time as he immediately made his presence felt.
Guiao fielded Lee in at exactly 3:08 mark of the opening quarter to the delight of the crowd at the frenzied Ynares Center in Antipolo.
Lee didn’t disappoint. In less than a minute, he went coast to coast for the easy lay-up off the steal. Then dished out an assist to Ronnie Matias in the ensuing play before going all the way for a nifty drive.
But the rookie, picked No. 2 overall, was just getting started.
Equipped with the game’s deadliest handles, Lee easily shrugged off a flat-footed Gary David with an in-and-out dribble before going behind his back for the rise up jumper.
Before you can even say his name, Lee already collected six points, one assist and a steal.
“He’s physically tough, mentally tough. He’s just special, you just can’t coach that,” praised Guiao.
The former University of the East standout went on to tally 19 points, five rebounds, three assists and a steal in 22 quality minutes.
“We’re trying to give him all the confidence he needs. And at the same time he’s jelling well with our other players,” explained Guiao.
But despite Lee’s polished game for a newcomer, there are still parts of it still in progress.
Lee, with his attack-mode mentality, has a tendency to go out of control on both ends. And in some instances against the Tigers, he was too eager and paid the price with four turnovers and had five fouls.
He also attempted an ill-advised triple down the stretch instead of opting for the higher-percentage shot by driving down the lane.
The six-foot guard, who is 22, knows he still have to work out some kinks.
“Although I ended up being the game’s best player I’m not satisfied,” Lee, who scattered 21 points, five rebounds and eight assists against Ginebra, told INQUIRER.net in Filipino.
“Even though I scored 19 points, what I’m aiming for is to have eight or nine assists. Plus, I still have to improve on my defense,” cited Lee, who led the Red Warriors to the UAAP Finals before losing to Ateneo in 2009.
The flamboyant Lee smirked when asked about Marcio Lassiter vowing to lock him down. Both though, were hobbled by early foul trouble and didn’t really go toe-to-toe except for short snatches of time in the second half.
“I didn’t really mind what he (Lassiter) said, I just let my game speak. We won the game, I was the best player, that’s all I have to say,” he said.