Jamil Wilson is hardly bothered by the expectations surrounding his arrival to a Converge side that’s yet to win in the PBA Season 48 Commissioner’s Cup.
The 33-year-old knows the kind of responsibility he’s entrusted with, but at the same time insisted that it will always take a collective effort if the FiberXers are to shed the billing of being the only winless team in the conference.
“That’s the perception of it,” he told Tiebreaker Times.
“You think you have to come in and be Superman, but that’s not the case.
“I have a team, and I have to depend on those guys just like they have to depend on me,” he continued.
Brought in to replace Tom Vodanovich, Wilson made a good account of himself in his debut as Converge battled NorthPort on Wednesday at the Philsports Arena.
There, the former NBA cager had 30 points on 10-of-24 field goal shooting, alongside 13 rebounds, two assists, and a steal in almost 43 minutes.
“I thought it was an awesome experience,” he said. “We’re still getting used to it. The team obviously has been implementing me in the past few days, trying to get accustomed … we’re still trying to figure each other out.”
But the result was still the same. The FiberXers wasted a good start and ultimately bowed, 111-95, absorbing their sixth defeat in as many outings.
The loss, furthermore, has turned all of their remaining elimination-round games into must-win assignments to keep their quarterfinal hopes alive. They will be facing Terrafirma, Meralco, Magnolia, NLEX, and Rain or Shine, in that order.
Wilson, though, remained positive despite the situation they’re in, believing that things will eventually fall into place once they get used to one another.
After all, it’s only Converge’s first game with a new reinforcement after spending the first five games of the Commissioner’s Cup with Vodanovich, who averaged 20.8 points, 12.4 rebounds, 3.6 assists, and 1.2 steals per night.
“I feel like at times we’re playing with a lot of confidence, and at some times we don’t. But I think as time goes on and we get more accustomed to each other, we’ll get better. And, we’ll start to string some of these games together,” he said.
“And as we get more reps, more confidence with each other, we’ll start to figure it out and we’ll have better stretches.”
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