Justin Arana just gained himself a believer.
The 23-year-old rookie drew praises from no less than Beau Belga as he and Converge made their PBA debut opposite Rain or Shine in the 2022 Philippine Cup curtain-raiser, Sunday evening at the SMART Araneta Coliseum.
Foiled was the FiberXers’ bid to start off on a winning note but the Arellano product provided one of the positives for the new club with a full line of six points, nine rebounds, three blocks, a steal, and an assist in 27 minutes.
“Marunong siya gumamit ng katawan,” the veteran big man said of Arana moments after the Elasto Painters’ 79-77 win.
Belga even went as far as saying that Arana reminded him of San Miguel main man June Mar Fajardo in terms of physicality, that he could’ve been very similar to the six-time MVP with a few inches more to his height.
“He knows how to play physical,” he offered.
“He’s a smaller version of June Mar. Kung lumaki-laki ‘to, medyo similar talaga sila ni June Mar. And ‘yun nga, he knows how to use his body, kaya medyo nacha-challenge din kami.
“As a veteran, siyempre ang ia-ano mo, magkakaroon ka ng pride na hindi puwedeng pabasta-basta na lang,” he added.
Pride, indeed, kicked in for Belga as he didn’t allow Rain or Shine to fall victim to Converge. He nailed the go-ahead three-pointer with 13.4 seconds left, which he did off of a stepback to ward off the defense of rookie Jeo Ambohot.
“From yesterday hanggang ngayon, sinabi ko sa kanila, ayaw kong mailagay sa history ng Converge na unang panalo, tayo. Kasi sabi ko, pang-habang buhay ‘yun, pare,” said the 35-year-old, who’s now in his 14th season.
“Ilalagay sa libro ‘yun na unang panalo ng Converge sa PBA, tayo ‘yung nakalaban. Sabi ko, hayaan mo sa iba. Ayaw ko lang na kami.”
But that kind of pride didn’t hinder Belga from being a guiding light of sorts not just to his own rooks, but to Arana as well — even if they’re on opposing sides.
“Oo, inaano ko lang naman, sinasabihan ko lang na laro lang. Laruin niya lang ‘yung laro niya. Kasi, siyempre mga bago itong mga ‘to dito eh,” he said.
“Siyempre kumbaga ikaw, iwe-welcome mo sila na talagang kasama ‘yung pananakit na welcome, pero kasama sa laro ‘yun eh,” he added jokingly.
Arana did confirm that Belga was giving him pointers in-game. “Okay naman si Kuya Beau,” he said. “Laruin ko lang daw ‘yung laro ko and ‘wag daw ako mahihiya kasi pakapalan daw talaga ng mukha sa PBA.”
It was quite a debut for Arana but the 6-foot-7 workhorse from Daet was far from satisfied, insisting that there’s a lot more work to be done.
“Para sa’kin kulang pa rin ‘yun kasi marami pa kaming kailangang i-develop,” he said.
“And siyempre kailangan naming manalo talaga.”
