Jalen Hudson (right) leaves TNT with a 5-1 record.—AUGUST DELA CRUZ
Several teams have gone on to replace importers who were mishandled or not good enough. TNT, one of three teams to share an early lead at the PBA Governors’ Cup is making a solid transformation to go from good to better, in the hopes of opening up another dimension of its game.
Tropang Giga has signed former Brooklyn Nets player Rondae Hollis-Jefferson (RHJ), who will replace Jalen Hudson starting Wednesday’s game against Blackwater.
“We hope that RHJ can make us a better defensive team and even more flexible. He’s not gifted like [Hudson] attacking, but he brings a lot of energy on the field,” he told the Inquirer on the eve of the clash.
Hollis-Jefferson, an American striker who played for two NBA clubs other than the Nets, takes over an import company that has played a huge role in TNT’s 5-1 record to date.
Hudson once dropped 56 points and 12 rebounds against the leading team Converge after being limited to 14 points by Magnolia.
Interim coach Jojo Lastimosa says that spinning with Hollis-Jefferson helps TNT become even more assertive in the highlands.
“It also freed up our wing position taken by Jalen. Now we can play bigger if we want to,” he said.
Hollis-Jefferson’s big play will help a TNT team still trying to draw more from its new acquisition of Justin Chua. The veteran center, acquired through a three-team transaction last month, has so far only averaged 5.3 points and 3.0 rebounds for Tropang Giga.
TNT also lacks defensive center back Poy Erram, who is still recovering from knee surgery.
28-year-old Hollis-Jefferson averaged seven NBA seasons of 9.0 points and 5.5 rebounds per game. Selected in 23rd place by the Nets in the 2015 Rookie of the Year Draft, the former Arizona standout player in the US National Association of College Athletes had his best year of the 2017-2018 season, when he averages 13.9 points and 6.8 bounces per game. Hollis-Jefferson arrives just as Tropang Giga is about to go through a difficult schedule. After Blackwater, TNT will face Meralco, San Miguel Beer and defending champion Barangay Ginebra. request
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