Arwind Santos appreciated Chris McCullough’s efforts to try and be a leader for the San Miguel Beermen in their 95-93 win over the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters in Game One of their 2019 PBA Commissioner’s Cup semifinal series Saturday night.
McCullough was seen expressing disappointment with his teammates during a timeout at the 7:27-mark of the third following a defensive collapse, but the former NBA cager said he had simply tried to be a leader and lift their spirits up.
“Kung tutuusin naman, maganda rin naman yung ginawa ni Chris. Wake-up call naman yun sa mga ganung sitwasyon,” Santos said. “Konting remind lang. Nagkasagutan lang ng konti. Normal naman yun sa isang team.”
According to the 2013 PBA Most Valuable Player, though, McCullough isn’t equipped to be a leader – yet.
“Si McCullough, hindi ko pa nakikita na pwede maging leader kasi bata pa. Pero pwede,” opined the 38-year-old Santos, who is 14 years older than the cager from The Bronx, New York.
“Sa ngayon, hindi pa talaga.”
Santos isn’t denying the 6-foot-9 forward’s skills, though; he even believes that McCullough can be better than the likes of Justin Brownlee and Terrence Jones. But first, he has to show consistency in his performances.
“Yung laro niya kasi kung makikita mo ‘pag kinompare mo siya sa ibang import kasi – like sina Brownlee, sina Terrence Jones, si Chris – konti na lang, pwede na lagpasan yung dalawang import na yun. Pwedeng mas magaling na si Chris,” he said.
“Kaya lang, depende kung paano niya ipapakita yun. Kasi ako, nakikita ko medyo sa depensa, sa opensa, ‘di pa ganun ka-consistent talaga. ‘Di ba nung unang dating niya [46] points, sumunod 40-something, tapos bigla nawala,” the 13-year pro continued.
“Kailangan dito sa mga ganitong sitwasyon, ‘di ka dapat inconsistent. Dapat consistent ka na. Kahit sabihin mong ‘di ka umiiskor, pero ang ganda ng depensa mo, nai-intimidate yung mga binabantayan mo, malaking bagay yun.”
All of the Beermen will now move on from Game One, and have their sights set on Game Two on Monday. For Santos, SMB still have plenty to work on. He also expects no less than a fightback from the sixth-seeded Elasto Painters.
“Ah siyempre, hindi papayag si Rain or Shine na ganun-ganun na lang. Babawi at babawi yan,” said the native of Angeles. “Kaya nga ako kahit nanalo kami hindi ibig sabihin na wala ka ng makikitang mali sa San Miguel.
“Ako, ang dapat tignan namin dun dagdagan pa namin yung effort namin, lalo na yung start namin kasi ampanget ng start namin eh,” added Santos, since San Miguel fell behind early, 7-20.
“Kailangan gamutin din namin yun.”
