Glenn Robinson III nearly became the first to ever strike a game-winning four-point shot in the PBA when he tried to save Magnolia past Meralco in a nail-biting PBA Season 49 Governors’ Cup opener on Sunday night.
The Hotshots only needed a triple as they’re down 94-97 with 10 seconds left, but the former NBA vet deemed it best to fire from 27 feet out and go for the win in a solid example of how much of a game-changer the shot could be.
He sized up Chris Newsome before launching from that far away, but his shot went a bit sideways and was immediately hauled down by Allen Durham, who then sealed the 99-94 victory for his side by sinking his charities.
“I knew we needed a three and they added the four-point line, so I figured, ‘Why not go for the kill?’ Why not try to get that four-pointer,” Robinson III explained to reporters shortly after the loss at the SMART Araneta Coliseum.
“Unfortunately it didn’t go down. Sometimes it’s like that, but I felt like I got a good look at it. It just didn’t fall for us,” he furthered.
In all fairness, the 30-year-old winger did have himself a solid PBA debut with a game-high 29 points on a 50-percent clip, alongside 11 rebounds.
He even sank a three-pointer during the closing minutes, when Magnolia was trying to fight back after being down 14 early in the final period.
That’s why it no longer came as a surprise that he opted for the kill as he said, which was actually his second attempt of the night.
But as odd as it may sound, Robinson III admitted that he isn’t a fan of the four-pointer — even if it was the very shot that gave them a chance.
“I’m not a huge fan of it. I don’t think everybody really pays that much attention to it,” he said. “But it’s a cool addition. We’ll play with it this year, see how it goes. I heard that it was in the All-Star Games here before.”
“It’s something new, it’s something exciting, you never know what will catch on and what won’t. But I’m not huge on it,” added the Gary, Indiana-native.
Explaining further why, Robinson III said that it’s a shot that players like him won’t really go after that much unless the opportunity presents itself.
“If you can get up a nice look, you get a chance for four points. But I think it’s cool for the fans, it’s interesting for the fans,” he offered.
“But as players, there’s not too many times that we actually think about, like, ‘Oh, I’m gonna take this four-pointer instead of the three,’ you know.”
