Jayson Castro sat out TNT’s game Thursday night. PBA IMAGES
MANILA, Philippines—TNT isn’t taking any risks when it comes to its players’ physical well-being while inside the bubble in Clark, Pampanga.
With the Philippine Cup becoming a grind each passing day, the Tropang Giga decided to give point guard Jayson Castro a bit of a break in their game against Blackwater.
TNT head coach Bong Ravena said Castro is listed as day-to-day after suffering tightness in his right calf that forced him to sit out his star guard in their 109-96 win over the Elite.
“He has tightness in his right calf and we don’t want to risk it,” said Ravena in Filipino Thursday. “We’d rather let him rest, because next week, we have three straight games happening every other day.”
Castro, 34, is still regarded as one of the best point guards in the league and has averaged 16 points, 5.5 assists, and 3.5 rebounds in the four games he’s played for the Tropang Giga this season.
Ravena said that playing in such a compact schedule puts a strain on his players’ bodies and it already happened to shooting guard RR Pogoy who battled through pain and led the Tropang Giga to a 110-91 win over Phoenix on Monday while scoring 30 points.
Although Pogoy was able to push through his ankle injury, Castro wouldn’t be let off the hook.
“We can’t really risk it like what happened before to Roger who still played. With Jayson, we don’t want it to happen again.”