Barangay Ginebra to test Shane Edwards

MANILA, Philippines — Ginebra head coach Tim Cone recently confirmed that former Cleveland Cavaliers forward Shane Edwards will suit up for the Barangay in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup starting April 22 while awaiting Justin Brownlee’s return from the ABL.

“We’re going with Shane until Justin finishes his obligations with the ABL,” said Cone. Player agent Sheryl Reyes said Edwards has been signed to play for Ginebra until May 2 when Brownlee is expected to be back. 

Only Alaska has not named an import for the second conference as coach Alex Compton said he’s still concluding negotiations. “We don’t have our import yet but we are finalizing talks with a certain player,” he said. “Once it’s official, we’ll make an announcement.”

The other imports are Jeremy Tyler for TNT, Arinze Onuaku for Meralco, Troy Gillenwater for San Miguel Beer, Reggie Johnson for Rain Or Shine, Malcolm White for GlobalPort, Jarrid Famous for Blackwater, C. J. Aiken for Kia, Arnett Moultrie for NLEX, James White for Phoenix and Vernon Macklin for Magnolia. The height limit for imports in the Commissioner’s Cup is 6-10.

Edwards, 30, is listed 6-7 and saw action in two games with the Cavaliers in the 2013-14 NBA season. He was inked to a 10-day contract by Cleveland from March 12 to 21, 2014. The Cavs lost both games where Edwards played. He had two points and one rebound in 10:27 minutes against Kevin Durant and the Oklahoma City Thunder on March 20, 2014. Edwards played alongside Tristan Thompson and Australia’s Matthew Dellavedova at Cleveland.

In 2015-16, Edwards averaged 22.1 points and 11.9 rebounds with Alaska in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup as an interim import. He was signed by the Aces while Rob Dozier recovered from an injury. Edwards is playing out his contract with the CLS Knights of Surabaya in the ABL which ends its regular season this week. Last Wednesday, he had 17 points and eight rebounds in the Knights’ 84-67 loss to Alab Pilipinas. The Knights have been eliminated from playoff contention. Brownlee, who led Ginebra to the last two Governors Cup titles, is also playing in the ABL where his team Alab has qualified for the quarterfinals.

Tyler, 26, never played senior high school or collegiate basketball and turned pro in Israel and Japan before he was picked on the second round by Charlotte in the 2011 NBA draft. He played for Golden State, Atlanta and New York in 80 total games over three NBA seasons. The 6-10, 260-pound Tyler started 23 of 42 games for the Warriors in the 2011-12 season, playing with Klay Thompson and Steph Curry. He shot an NBA career-high 17 points for New York in a 114-88 win over Boston in the 2013-14 season. Tyler is expected to fly in on Saturday to join the KaTropa.

Aiken, 27, has been in Manila practicing with Kia since March 10. He played three years at St. Joseph’s University, Meralco coach Norman Black’s alma mater, and has suited up in Poland, Australia and Canada as an import. A tenacious shot-blocker, the 6-9 Aiken was named the Atlantic 10 Conference Player of the Year in 2012. He started in 82 of 98 games at St. Joseph’s, averaging 9.6 points, 5 rebounds, 3.3 blocks and 30.2 minutes.

Johnson, 28, comes with outstanding championship credentials. He’s played on title squads in the Netherlands, Thailand and the ABL. Johnson was honored as the ABL’s Most Valuable World Import in 2016 with Mono Vampire of Thailand. The four-year University of Miami 6-10 center averaged 22.7 points and 10.8 rebounds for Mono Vampire in the ABL this season before leaving the team for undisclosed personal reasons last January.

White, 29, reported as a replacement for Sean Williams with GlobalPort in the Commissioner’s Cup last season and averaged 21.8 points and 14.8 rebounds in five games before he was replaced by Justin Harper. Batang Pier coach Pido Jarencio has decided to bring back White. “Malcolm couldn’t adjust to our rules and complained that he was often called for an offensive foul whenever he sealed,” said Jarencio. “Now that referees are allowing more contact, maybe a physical player like Malcolm would be a good fit.” GlobalPort considered to bring in 6-9 James Williams but at 38, the veteran from Brown Mackie Junior College of Kansas may not be able to keep pace with younger imports.