Darius Days is indeed leaving the TNT Tropang 5G. Before the Tropa took on the Converge FiberXers on Tuesday at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium, it was widely reported that Days would be taking his talents to the Illawarra Hawks in Australia’s NBL.
Against the FiberXers, Days played like a man in a hurry to leave, scoring just 10 points on 4-for-19 shooting with 4 rebounds and 1 assist. Despite that mediocre effort, TNT still eked out a victory thanks in large part to the fearless Rey Nambatac, who punctuated his 30-point effort with the buzzer-beating game-winner.
After the game, the 6-foot-6 forward rued his lack of efficiency and told reporters, “we’ll see what’s more to come.”
Whatever comes next is something TNT, its fans, and the PBA won’t be seeing on local shores anymore, as Days himself confirmed the move to the NBL. In four games here, he averaged a measly 16.0 points and 5.3 rebounds as he came in woefully out of shape—much to the chagrin of Chot Reyes.
TNT Taps Rahlir Hollis-Jefferson to Replace Darius Days
With Darius Days gone, the Tropang 5G have tapped the services of Rahlir Hollis-Jefferson, the older brother of their resident import, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson.
The “other” RHJ suited up for TNT during the latter part of the elimination round of the 2023–24 Commissioner’s Cup. He was brought in to replace his younger brother, who at that time suffered a neck injury. The two RHJs also played for TNT when it competed in the East Asia Super League (EASL) in 2023.
Now that TNT has found its import replacement, fans are hoping that the other Hollis-Jefferson can help turn things around after an uneven start to the team’s title defense.
