A sort of reunion will take place on Sunday at SM Mall of Asia Arena.
Meralco will face off against the Blackwater Elite in the opening salvo of the 2019 PBA Commissioner’s Cup. This means Bolts head coach Norman Black will take on his godson Bobby Ray Parks, Jr., who’s making his debut in the Filipino pro league.
Black looks forward to it.
“I’ll be going up against Ray-Ray. So that’s gonna be interesting also, finally seeing my godson playing in the PBA,” said the decorated Black, as they will meet at the hardwood at 4:30 PM.
“So I’m looking forward to that.”
Parks Jr. will finally play in the PBA after years of anticipation. Black admitted it will be tough for the 26-year-old, being compared to his dad Bobby, who’s one of the greatest to play in the league. Still, he believes Ray will be a star as well.
“That’s a lot of pressure on Ray-Ray comparing him to his father. His father was an NBA player actually – he’s good enough to play in the NBA. And Bobby, he’s in a class of his own. Rayray’s good, but his father is way up there. He’s way, way up there,” Black said.
“But he’s been a star everywhere he’s gone, so I don’t see why the PBA will be any exception. High school, college, pros, he’s been a good player so I expect that too to happen in the PBA also.”
Another thing that Black looks forward to is their clash versus their former foreign reinforcement Alex Stepheson.
The hulking 6-foot-10 Stepheson played for the Orangemen in the 2017 Commissioner’s Cup. He steered the Bolts to a 7-4 record in the eliminations, but they lost to eventual runners-up TNT KaTropa in the quarterfinals, 1-2.
Black is aware of the match-up problems Stepheson might present, but he’s confident with new import Gani Lawal.
“We’re going up against Alex Stepheson. He’s quite a big guy as we know and he likes to run the floor, so Gani will have his hands full inside the paint because Alex is a bit bigger and taller than him. But I think Gani will do well against him,” he continued.
“Gani also has other strengths that he’ll be able to use against Alex, Alex probably has the strength advantage.”
