New San Miguel import
Devon Scott. –DEVON SCOTT INSTAGRAM
Devon Scott will not only be tasked to turn San Miguel Beer’s fortunes around in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Commissioner’s Cup, but also break a recurring trend.
Scott’s debut on Friday at 5:45 p.m. against upstart Converge at PhilSports Arena in Pasig City will likely give a prelude in the Beermen’s bid to improve their batting average when it comes to switching imports in a conference.
A 1-2 start prompted the Beermen to part ways with the struggling Diamond Stone, a replacement for original choice Thomas Robinson, who got hurt prior to the start of the conference.
The performance of the well-traveled Scott will be crucial for coach Leo Austria and San Miguel, with June Mar Fajardo out for a good portion of the eliminations following a recent throat procedure.
And Austria has set a modest target for a team teeming with so much talent.
“We’re hoping that we can win at least 60 or 70 percent of our next nine games for us to get into the quarterfinals,” said Austria.
San Miguel has had a habit of changing reinforcements in the previous five import-laden conferences, and four of which ended in falling short of taking home the crown.
The lone success was back in the 2019 Commissioner’s Cup when ex-NBA player Chris McCullough replaced former Best Import Charles Rhodes to help San Miguel capture the midseason title despite being seeded seventh in the playoffs.
Scott, 28, has never played in the NBA but has plenty of experience overseas. He had impressive stints in Canada, Argentina, South Korea, Brazil, Israel, the Dominican Republic and Mexico.
He hopes to help San Miguel redeem itself after being handed a 26-point defeat at the hands of guest team Bay Area last Sunday, a result that saw Stone scoring just 11 points which affirmed coaching staff’s decision to flip the switch, especially with Fajardo being sidelined for the first time this season.
Converge import Quincy Miller in his first game in the PBA. –PBA IMAGES
A stern test for the Beermen will be the fast-paced and defensive-minded FiberXers of coach Aldin Ayo, who has guided the squad to a very decent 2-2 start.
Ayo will bank on import Quincy Miller to make sure Scott won’t have a productive debut for the Beermen.
Bay Area, meanwhile, is favored to extend the misery of hard luck Terrafirma in the 3 p.m. opener and improve to 6-1 in the tourney.
The Dragons, however, prefer not to take lightly the Dyip, losers of the last 21 games dating back to last season.
“It’s not like a 30- or 40-game season. I’ve never played a 12-game season before,” said Bay Area coach Brian Goorjian, who is more familiar with the Australian National Basketball League and the Chinese Basketball Association in China.
“So wins [here] are four times as important,” added Goorjian, who is also the concurrent Australian national coach.
Terrafirma counterpart Johnedel Cardel, on the other hand, is simply hoping for good fortune to come his squad’s way.
“Who knows, the breaks might go our way [on Friday],” Cardel told the PBA website in Filipino. “I just keep telling my players that nothing is impossible. If we manage an upset, all of those 21 losses will be forgotten.”