DUBAI, United Arab Emirates—As the quarterfinal round of the 30th Dubai International Basketball Championship rolls around Thursday night here (Friday morning in Manila), Mighty Sports faces a mild concern: Justin Brownlee is hurting, and the team has to figure out how to proceed without him.
The team was set to battle Oil Sports Club of Iraq at press time at Shabab Al Ahli Club, but no one could tell if Brownlee will see action—in the quarterfinals and moving forward.
Coach Charles Tiu and coteam owner Caesar Wongchuking will decide an hour before their 9 p.m. (1 a.m. Friday Manila time) showdown if they will let the charismatic import play.
If Brownlee’s injury is serious, one thing is certain.
“He said he can play, but we won’t force him,” said Wongchuking.
Though Brownlee has taken the medicines needed to ease the pain, there’s still a slight swelling on his left knee—a result of a bad fall following a hard collision with a rugged Al Wahda defender in the team’s 85-81 win on Tuesday.