The 2017-18 PBA Philippine Cup will be Greg Slaughter’s first all-Filipino tournament in two years, no thanks to the ACL injury he had incurred. But even this early in the tournament, the seven-foot behemoth already has responsibilities to shoulder.
After returning in the 2017 Governor’s Cup fully healed, the 28-year-old had then proven how pivotal he could be for the Barangay, so much so that he earned the Best Player of the Conference plum and helped his squad retain the crown.
Their road to back-to-back titles was influenced greatly by import Justin Brownlee, however. And now that the Philippine Cup has raised its curtains, the challenge begins for Slaughter to become one of the Barangay’s captains.
“I understand that I have a big responsibility now. With one conference behind me after my injury I feel like I’m back feeling comfortable with everything,” said the fourth-year league veteran. “Last conference we won the championship with Justin, that’s great.
“But now that we’re without him, we’ve got to step up and I’m ready to take on that role.”
And on Christmas Day — which was also the Barangay’s season opener — the Filipino-American then showed that he can fulfill that task.
Slaughter scored 24 points on 71.4 percent shooting from the field, grabbed 13 rebounds, and blocked four shots to power the Gin Kings to an 89-78 victory over the Magnolia Hotshots, Monday at the Philippine Arena in Bocaue, Bulacan.
“The most important is we got the win today,” he said after Christmas Clasico. “It’s only our first game and the goal for us is to win the championship.
“It’s good to get that first win but we still got a lot of room to improve.”
The 7-foot big man may have been the one who starred on Monday night, but he only served as the spearhead to a well-deployed attack imposed by Ginebra — LA Tenorio scored 15, while Japeth Aguilar and Jervy Cruz each produced 12 markers.
For Slaughter, it is enough to say that the Barangay will always be about being a team, even when somebody like him or any other individual shines in a given night.
“We’re more team oriented,” said the Cebuano cager. “Even when we won the championships, we pride ourselves on getting high assists.
“That’s our calling card, sharing the ball, moving the ball and playing team defense.”
