Rain or Shine Elasto Painters’ Jaylen Johnson during against San Miguel Beermen’s Justin Patton during a game within the 2026 PBA Commissioner’s Cup. –PBA IMAGES
MANILA, Philippines—Jaylen Johnson saw a well-known face across the court when Rain or Shine Elasto Painters faced San Miguel Beermen within the PBA Commissioner’s Cup at Ninoy Aquino Stadium on Wednesday.
So naturally, he played with a chip on his shoulder, helping Rain or Shine escape with a 116-112 win over Justin Patton and the Beermen.
“Justin’s an incredible player. I’ve known him for a very long time, he’s my guy,” Johnson told the Inquirer.
“I’ve played against him in highschool, he was in LeBron camp with me and we played one another in [the] G-League a pair times until all throughout our pro profession.”
Johnson tallied 24 points, five rebounds, and three assists to get the higher of Patton and the Beermen as Rain or Shine zoomed to a franchise-best 5-0 start.
Despite the loss, Patton was no slouch with a double-double of 12 points and 17 rebounds for San Miguel, which rallied from 25 points down.
But Johnson made sure to make life difficult for his longtime friend.
“I attempted to limit his opportunities because they’ve quite a lot of big players over there so I just tried to limit him one of the best I can,” Johnson said.
Patton was agitated early within the third quarter when he caught his fifth personal foul with roughly 20 minutes left in the sport.
Ultimately, Patton’s efforts went for naught because the Beermen crashed to 3-3 for the conference.