Hard act to follow

LAOAG CITY – Barangay Ginebra’s Nate Brumfield may be overweight and doesn’t elevate as high as Meralco’s Tony Danridge but the Kings couldn’t care less. Last Friday night, Brumfield put on an exhibition that stamped his class as the import of choice in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup. He collected 32 points, including 12-of-13 free throws, 11 rebounds and eight assists to power Ginebra to a resounding 115-98 win over Meralco at the Centennial Arena here.

From the looks of the other imports in town, Brumfield is the only recruit who can play with his back to the basket, put the ball on the floor, drive down the middle, bang bodies without flinching, hit foul shots consistently and invite the double team at the post. He’s definitely the only import with the width to fill up appreciable space in the paint and the size to dominate at the low block. What’s more, Brumfield has the ability to find open teammates off double coverage – something he learned from his go-to days at Oklahoma Baptist University in the NAIA Division I.

Ginebra assistant coach Allan Caidic said in Brumfield’s first practice game, he scored 18 points in a loss to Rain Or Shine. In his second practice game, Brumfield netted 34 in a win over Powerade and in his third, fired 35 in a tie with Smart Gilas.

Before Friday’s game, Caidic said the jury was still out on Brumfield. “You can’t rate him above or below average, maybe, only average until he proves himself,” added Caidic.

Sure enough, Brumfield proved his worth against Meralco, mocking Asi Taulava’s defense by facing up and driving strong to the hole then taking Danridge to school by overpowering him close to the basket. Brumfield hit 15 of his 32 points in the second period and the Bolts never recovered from the electric shock.

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In fairness, Danridge didn’t do a bad job. He finished with 30 points, 17 in the third period when Meralco trimmed a 24-point deficit to 11. But it was obvious that the Bolts lacked the chemistry to beat an intact squad like Ginebra.

Meralco coach Ryan Gregorio started with Chris Ross at one and Mark Cardona at two then brought in Sol Mercado to replace Ross. He also tried a three-guard combination with Ross, Cardona and Mercado at three. The Bolts couldn’t generate enough power to diffuse Ginebra.

“It’s the first time our team got together as a whole,” said Gregorio. “We’ve brought in seven new players since we began last conference and we’re still feeling each other out. Tony hadn’t played with the guys before the game. I’m using Mark and Sol at the two spot but there will be times when they’ll play together. We’ll get better as the conference progresses. But the gelling won’t come overnight.”

Caidic said the team that could surprise is Smart Gilas. “First of all, they’ve got a 6-10 quality player (Marcus Douthit) then they’ve got players who are shoo-ins for the coming draft like (Mac) Baracael, (Mark) Barroca, (Marcio) Lassiter, (J. V.) Casio and (Chris) Lutz,” said Caidic. “Dylan (Ababou) played four in the UAAP and was an MVP but now, he’s playing three and adjusting. I think Smart Gilas is a top six team – I don’t see Smart Gilas landing in the last four and getting eliminated right away.”

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Someone who knows Danridge inside out is Hector Gutierrez whose job is to drive the import around. Gutierrez worked over 20 years with Sta. Lucia Realty then was hired by Meralco on a one-year contract after going jobless for five months. He’s relieved that he’s back in the PBA.

One thing about Gutierrez, he does his job well.

“Danridge is one of the nicest imports I’ve ever worked with,” said Gutierrez. “You give him something to eat, he’ll eat anything, even Filipino food he’s never tried before. Imports like Derrick Brown, Stephen Howard and Victor Thomas were hard to please. Not Danridge. He told me he’ll need me only four hours a day to bring me to the office, to the gym and back to the hotel, not to treat him like a king because he’s just a simple basketball player out to win as many games for Meralco as possible. Danridge is a religious guy. He goes to Victory for Christ church every Sunday. He carries a Bible and his cellphone has a lot of words from the Bible. When he gets his pay, he sends everything to his parents back in the US and keeps only his food allowance. On the court, he likes to share the ball. He’s a team player not like this import who once told me his mother advised him never to pass the ball so he can be a hero.”

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Ilocos Norte Gov. Imee Marcos hosted a dinner for the PBA visitors at the Malacanang of the North by Lake Paoay last Thursday. Gov. Imee said she was once a PBA “mom,” feeding Crispa players and even handing out bonuses. While she was a Crispanatic, her brother Sen. Bongbong cheered for Toyota. She said her late father, President Marcos, was a good friend of Ernesto Floro who owned Crispa.

Gov. Imee said she has fond memories of the PBA and recalled how Billy Ray Bates used to explode on the court. “How is Andy Jao?” she asked.

Gov. Imee and Mayor Michael Farinas met with Meralco senior vice president and head of customer retail services, corporate marketing and communications Al Panlilio, Meralco senior vice president and head of human resources and corporate services Ramon Segismundo, Meralco treasurer Rafael Andrade and Maynilad senior vice president for business development Patrick Gregorio over lunch last Friday. They discussed areas of mutual interest, including the supply of power in the province, the quality of power, the tourism industry, the proximity to Hong Kong, Taipei and Kaohsiung, the electric cooperative and the availability of water.