Barangay Ginebra San Miguel’s Justin Brownlee has largely been contained in the PBA Governors’ Cup Finals. In fact, Games 1 through 3 are arguably the worst three-game stretch of Kabayan’s illustrious career in Asia’s oldest pay-for-play league, with the prolific import held to just 20.0 per game on atrocious shooting clips—at least for Brownlee’s lofty standards.
In these Finals, JB has shot just 42% from the field overall and 2-for-16 from the three- and four-point lines combined. In fact, Brownlee had not hit a three in this series until the 6:38 mark of the fourth quarter of Game 3—unusual for someone whose chief weapon on offense has been outside sniping.
Brownlee’s struggles are actually part of a larger trend that is Ginebra’s inability to hit consistently from downtown, shooting a ghastly 21.9% from the arc through three games after shooting 38% in the quarterfinals and semis.
Tim Cone knows why.
TNT’s Defense Still Stifling Ginebra’s Offense
“That’s a credit to Talk N Text [TNT Tropang Giga] and their defense,” Cone told reporters after Game 3, when asked about Brownlee’s and Ginebra’s struggles.
That stifling defense continued even in Ginebra’s Game 3 win, with the Tropa holding Brownlee to just 18 points on 8-for-17 overall and 1-for-5 from the arc.
“They’re taking certain things away from us; one they’re taking away is Justin’s three-point shot. They’re not letting them get it, they’re closing out on him, they’re making it put the ball on the floor, and Justin’s exploring different ways to try to win,” Cone added.
Indeed, Brownlee impacted Game 3 in a lot of different ways, handing out 4 assists and adding 1 steal and 4 blocks on the other end of the floor to help Ginebra get their first win of the series.
Cone nonetheless admitted that Ginebra has not been able to figure out the TNT defense, particularly that of Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, who has hounded Brownlee for most of this series so far.
“Usually, if you do one thing to Justin, he figures it out right away. You might stop him for that game, but next game, he’s gonna explode and figure it out,” Cone said. “We’re having a harder time helping him do that in this series because of the tenacity of Rondae. We’re exploring different avenues to try to beat their defense, but their defense is tough, it’s been tough all-conference.”
Despite his import’s early struggles, the PBA’s winningest coach believes Brownlee is due for a big game.
“We still expect Justin to have one of his explosive games this series…,” Cone declared.
Game 4 on Sunday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum might be a great time for it.
