Carl Bryan Cruz thriving in Macaraya’s system at Cafe France

Carl Bryan Cruz. PBA IMAGES

One of the biggest revelations for CafeFrance this conference has been the emergence of Carl Bryan Cruz.

Known as a bruiser back in his days with FEU, the 6-3 forward has modified his game to better suit the needs of the Bakers.

Flanked by the hulking Rod Ebondo, Cruz has made himself as one of coach Egay Macaraya’s go-to guys when it comes to scoring, while not forgetting his hardworking old self.

READ: Cafe France sweeps Tanduay to clinch PBA D-League Finals berth

“Di naman ako nakikipag-compete sa teammates ko pagdating sa scoring. Hinihintay ko lang dumating sa akin yung game ko,” he said, as he shares the scoring load with snipers Samboy de Leon and Mar Villahermosa, as well as playmakers Mon Abundo, Paul Zamar, and Aaron Jeruta.

Cruz believes that Macaraya’s free-flowing system has suited him well, as evidenced by his play so far in the 2016 PBA D-League Aspirants’ Cup.

“Nag-fit ako sa sistema dito. Lagi kasi kami nagpapasahan at pag open ka, itira mo lang,” he said. “Siguro mas effective ako sa ganoong game na free-wheeling.”

And as CafeFrance returns to the Finals anew, Cruz believes that their chemistry has set the Bakers apart.

“Iba yung samahan namin. Nandoon na yung core ng CEU, and kami parang nag-reinforce lang, pero nag-blend kami sa team. Kaya rin siguro maganda yung outcome ng mga laro namin,” he said.