Phoenix victory over Meralco exposes contrasting tales of two imports

Phoenix import Kaleb Wesson. PBA IMAGES

Phoenix coach Topex Robinson could afford to crack a joke Wednesday night.

“If he scored 40 points, we’re gonna kick him out,” Robinson said after import Kaleb Wesson’s 23 points and 13 rebounds propelled Phoenix to an 89-82 win over Meralco in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup.

If only Norman Black could laugh along.

As Phoenix’s patience on Wesson continued to pay dividends on Wednesday, things have been a stark contrast over at the Meralco camp and its more-decorated import Johnny O’Bryant.

“When we took Kaleb, we knew what we were gonna get,” said Robinson, whose third straight win after starting 0-3 in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup has been credited to not only assurances about the franchise’s financial issues, but also their satisfaction over what Wesson has brought since joining the team.

“We’re not expecting Kaleb to score 30 points [or] 40 points,” said Robinson, adding that he want “somebody who’s gonna defend, who’s gonna be our glue guy, who’s gonna be vocal and who’s gonna make sure that everybody’s on the same page.

“I don’t know if you see that, but he’s everywhere. He really gets everyone involved, wakes them up when they’re playing lackluster and that’s what we’re looking for, and he has responded well.”

Johnny going home?

Black, however, needs scoring. While there’s no specific number in mind, he certainly wants something more than just the seven point O’Bryant managed at PhilSports Arena.And the decorated coach has apparently given his import the ultimatum after the former NBA player missed 15 of his 17 shots.

“We’re already talking about it,” Black said when asked if Meralco will stick to O’Bryant. “Obviously, you don’t want your import scoring seven points, giving you almost no chance of winning. And it doesn’t help that we’re missing key players.”

And Black needs O’Bryant more nowadays with injuries to Chris Newsome (calf) and Chris Banchero (ankle) sending the Bolts in a 1-4 (win-loss) spiral.

“I was hoping that his performance would go up during this stretch while waiting for guys to return from injuries. But he’s been having a problem shooting from the perimeter which I think was one of his strengths, but he has not been shooting the ball well,” said Black, who was very high on O’Bryant, believing that the Bolts hit a “home run” when they got him to reinforce the team for the midseason conference.

Robinson is getting more than he expects from Wesson, who was praised for being accountable during Phoenix’s slow start that would normally result in teams thinking about making a switch.

“He knows his mistakes, he owes it and he tries to be better as well,” concluded Robinson as his Fuel Masters moved in the middle of the pack with help from rookies Tyler Tio and Encho Serrano who scored 14 points apiece.