Achie Iñigo. PBA IMAGES
This time, Achie Iñigo is taking the challenge of being the lead playmaker head on.
Playing second fiddle to heralded teammate Mike Tolomia last season, the 5-foot-9 guard has been thrust to the spotlight as he is tasked to man the plays for Marinerong Pilipino in the 2017 PBA D-League Foundation Cup.
“I’m just a back-up point guard to Mike before. Now, I’m starting to get my rhythm because I should be more of a court general. I need to be more offensive-minded, but I have to be decisive,” he said in Filipino.
His time with Kaohsiung Truth in the ASEAN Basketball League did help him a lot in preparing himself to these bigger roles.
“I learned to be patient off the court. In our college days, you just run up the court and play. But there, you have to be deliberate because you have to be smart there,” said Iñigo.
Iñigo struggled to get his shots going in his first game with the Seafarers, shooting 3-of-8 from the field to finish with 10 points.
He did better in setting up his teammates, as he racked up six assists and hauled down two rebounds in his 30 minutes on the floor.
Unfortunately, his efforts weren’t enough as Marinerong Pilipino bowed in its conference-opener to Batangas, 92-82 on Tuesday.
But Iñigo is confident his team can bounce back especially after what he thought were first game jitters.
“It was our first game and we still haven’t known each other that well. We haven’t jelled the same way Batangas did because we’re just together for just two months, so it’s a given that we’ll have those lapses,” he said. “We still have a long way. It’s just our first game. We’ll figure things out soon.”