For Charles Garcia, his current, main objective with the Barangay Ginebra San Miguel is to quickly adjust himself to the Philippine-style of play.
The American center has been in the country for about a week now, but has only completed one practice, as he battled dehydration due to the extreme heat in the metro as of late.
“The humidity, it’s just hot. I just got to get used to it,” disclosed Garcia.
Garcia has debuted for the Gin Kings on Sunday night. Though they lost to the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters 89-108, he still had a decent debut with 19 points, eight rebounds, and six assists.
For the 29-year-old, much better outings will be seen from him as soon as he gets his shape back.
“I just got to get in better shape, that’s it, I’ll be fine,” said the 6-foot-10 Garcia, who hails from California.
“Other than that, everything’s going to click. Once I get in better shape, hey, it’s a breeze.”
What pushes Garcia to get his form back as soon as possible, according to him, is not just racking up numbers, but also racking up victories for the Barangay to earn the respect of their legions of fans.
“They’re the most popular team so you want to come out and do good,” expressed Garcia, who admitted that there’s a bit of pressure playing for the crowd darlings.
“I wish we came out with the win.”
But of course, wins won’t come along if jelling with the Gin Kings won’t be that polished.
“At the end of the day, it’s about chemistry,” shared Garcia. “Feel out my teammates and make them feel me out, too.
“It’s my first game, first time seeing me play, I think we’ll be pretty fine.”
