Tony Bishop Jr. (No. 21) elevates his scoring for the Kings against the Batang Pier. —PBA IMAGES
Tony Bishop Jr. quashed whatever doubts fans have over his role on Sunday night after coming through for Barangay Ginebra and bailing the Gin Kings out against a dangerous NorthPort side that was as desirous to firm up its twice-to-beat possibilities within the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Commissioner’s Cup.
The Panamanian import, who got here in as a stand-in for the indefatigable Justin Brownlee, scattered 26 points within the 103-93 victory to maintain the defending champions neck-and-neck with the Batang Pier in the primary half, and eventually out of harm’s way in the ultimate frame.
“Just being patient—in understanding the offense an increasing number of, and understanding what coach Tim [Cone] wants me to do while getting the chemistry down with the players and never forcing anything,” Bishop said when asked about his gallant effort that helped Ginebra to a 7-3 win-loss record and a share of the No. 4 spot with San Miguel.
“He’s worked really, really hard from day one to integrate himself into what we do, and as you’ll be able to see he’s improving and higher at it,” Cone said of his import following the triumph at Smart Araneta Coliseum.
“We will see he’s improving and higher at it and that’s the entire point—him to be higher at it and be where he desires to be come playoff time,” he added.
Bum knee
Bishop Jr. shot 55 percent from the sphere that night and added 16 rebounds, five steals and a pair of blocks to his name despite missing two practices on account of a bum knee that he continued to take care of that night.
Ginebra’s fans have been wary of Bishop as he has been averaging only 23 points—a far cry from his numbers when he was serving the Meralco franchise. The Gin Kings’ reinforcement ranks only sixth amongst his energetic counterparts in scoring. But Ginebra has opted to follow him—and for a great reason.
“That’s been an indicator of our teams. We’ve got a sophisticated system and it’s essential to grow inside the system. You’ve got to have time to grow with the system. We don’t expect guys to come back instantly and pick it up,” Cone explained.
“If we now have a man late within the conference are available it’s gonna be very much of a disruption, because we’re gonna be back to ground zero. It’s not only offensively; we’re pretty complex defensively, too. There’s quite a lot of demands we placed on our players, too, defensively,” he added.
“We’re one game away from the playoffs and [Tony has] worked really, really hard to get thus far and I feel that’s an enormous advantage over other teams because we do have that continuity and that belief in what we do. So yeah, it’s an actual advantage for us to maintain that continuity with Tony within the lineup all over.” INQ
