Photo by Tristan Tamayo/ INQUIRER.net
Jason Perkins never expected all the chips to fall into place.
Underwhelming in his final year with La Salle, the Fil-Am forward was at a crossroads on whether he would still continue on his basketball career.
“Coming out of La Salle, my confidence was really not high,” the 6-foot-3 forward said.
Fortunately for Perkins, Cignal-San Beda welcomed him with open arms and rekindled his old flame as he avearged 14.5 points, 8.1 rebounds, and 1.5 assists to help the team snare the 2017 PBA D-League Aspirants’ Cup title.
He truly showed how bad he wanted to be a champion again, leading the Hawkeyes with 21 points, five rebounds, and three blocks in the squad’s 81-78 Game 3 clincher last Thursday.
Perkins, though, said he wouldn’t have performed the way he did if not for his coaches and teammates.
“Coach Boyet (Fernandez) instilled a lot of confidence in me and I appreciate that a lot. The whole team worked hard and it pushed me to work harder. I learned so much from them and helped me grow as a player. I just feel blessed getting a championship,” said the 24-year-old.
With Perkins’ confidence back on track, he’s looking forward for what the future holds for him.
“I got to be honest, I’m not too sure on what’s next. I got to work then go to school. I’ll probably figure things out. Maybe I’ll go back to the D-League again,” he said.
Despite all of the uncertainty looming in his basketball career, Perkins promised that he won’t be hanging his sneakers anytime soon.
“Definitely no retirement,” he said with a chuckle.