PBA: Sonny Estil has strong debut in Ginebra loss

Ginebra rookie Sonny Estil during a game against Magnolia in the PBA Philippine Cup.–PBA IMAGES

MANILA, Philippines–Sonny Estil had a solid PBA debut for Barangay Ginebra amid nerves of playing on the ultimate stage of his career.

But that was dampened by a dismal start that eventually led to an 80-73 loss to the Magnolia Hotshots on Sunday at Smart Araneta Coliseum.

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“Good game, but we lost so it’s useless,” Estil said after finishing with nine points and seven rebounds in almost 18 minutes off the bench.

Estil showed some of his activity and offense that intrigued and eventually prompted Ginebra to pick the Agusan del Norte native, who had stops in four colleges prior to playing in the MPBL.

Coach Tim Cone tried to use him a few times when Ginebra was trying to make a comeback in the second half, but Magnolia was able to sustain its lead until the end.

“It was like it was at least two of us who were playing, instead of the five on the floor. I guess that’s why Coach Tim was upset,” Estil observed in Filipino.

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Nonetheless, his appearance fulfilled an unlikely dream that saw the 24-year-old, unheralded before his MVP performance in the Combine, being selected by the Gin Kings at No. 11 in the Rookie Draft last month.

There was pressure going in, given the new phase of his basketball career, but Estil opted for ways to try and play a normal game.

“I’m used to playing in front of a lot of people, it’s just that I’m now playing in the PBA,” he said. “I just tried to shrug off pressure by playing like when I was a kid having fun.”

With a PBA game under his belt, Estil feels that things will go smoothly moving forward as he tries to help Ginebra bounce back from its opening night blues.