MANILA, Philippines—TNT consultant Mark Dickel knew he had to keep star forward Terrence Jones from tiring himself out too much in the semifinal opener against Barangay Ginebra.
Jones is the KaTropa’s focal point on offense averaging 32.2 points, 15.5 rebounds, and 7.4 assists throughout the PBA Commissioner’s Cup, but Dickel also knows that his superstar was capable of locking down anyone in the league.
Despite the coaching staff’s wish to minimize Jones’ workload, the 6-foot-9 big man desired to defend Ginebra’s star Justin Brownlee in the payoff period.
“That was definitely something we were talking about with Terrence towards the end of the game,” said Dickel after TNT’s 95-92 win in the five-game series Friday at Smart Araneta Coliseum.
“The problem is, of course, trying not to wear Terrence out. I’m playing him so many minutes and it’s hard when you him play him at the three [small forward] on one end and get him to defend the guard on the other end.”
Jones, however, was adamant that he wanted to stop Brownlee and he did just that when it mattered the most.
Brownlee, who had 22 points up until the end of the third quarter, scored just one point in the final period going 0-of-3 from the field against the defense of Jones.
“I just wanted to make it difficult for him. He’s a great player, an experienced player in this league and I just wanted to try to, you know, make it as tough as I can for him,” said Jones who finished with 24 points, 12 rebounds, seven assists, three steals, and four blocks in 48 minutes of play.
Jones’ defense on Brownlee not only stifled Ginebra’s star, but it also allowed TNT to get control late in the game.
With less than two minutes left, Jones closed out and stole the ball from Brownlee at the top of the key and the former Houston Rocket blazed his trail for the quick bucket down the other end giving the KaTropa a 93-89 lead with 1:30 remaining.
Jones then closed things out with a driving layup past Joe Devance and against, once again, Brownlee for the game’s final field goal with 10.5 seconds remaining.
Despite Dickel’s fear of seeing Jones tire himself out in the defensive end, he knew the former NBA player was capable of handling his business against Brownlee.
Dickel is aware of Brownlee’s capabilities on the basketball floor but he knew Jones had played against one of the game’s best in LeBron James.
James holds a 4-3 head-to-head advantage over Jones in the NBA and the former’s scoring average in those seven games is double that of the latter at 27.4 points to 13.6 a game according to Basketball-Reference.com.
Jones, however, had the last laugh in the matchup when he played for the New Orleans Pelicans against James’ Cleveland Cavaliers on Jan. 23, 2017.
The Pelicans took a slim 124-122 win with Jones putting up 36 points, 11 rebounds, two steals, and three blocks to James’ 26 points, 10 rebounds, and 12 assists.
“Brownlee’s an incredibly hard player to guard but Terrence is capable. Throughout his career he has always won and he has a role even in the NBA,” said Dickel of Jones who was an NCAA national champion with the Kentucky Wildcats in 2012.
“His matchup in the NBA is LeBron James, they don’t put you on him unless you can defend, so I know he’s capable,” added Dickel.