Jaylen Johnson got himself quite the character reference that ultimately landed him a gig with Rain or Shine for the PBA Season 50 Commissioner’s Cup.
No less than Kevin Quiambao vouched for the former Louisville Cardinal when Elasto Painters head coach Yeng Guiao came calling to ask for the latter, as the two were teammates with the Goyang Sono Skygunners in the KBL.
“It’s a good thing we scouted him through KQ,” said the champion mentor shortly after their 120-111 victory over Converge on Friday at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay to stretch their unbeaten run to six in the midseason joust.
“We asked for KQ’s input on Jaylen, and he guaranteed that he was a good dancer. So we took him just because of that.”
That, of course, was just some plain ribbing between player and coach, given that ‘JJ’ is becoming known to Filipino fans for his dance moves after shots–some he pulls off by his lonesome, and others he shares with teammates.
Such scenes offer a glimpse of how solid the atmosphere has been within Rain or Shine, and there should be no doubt whatsoever about how well it’s translating on the court. They remained atop the conference standings after Friday’s win.
(C) KBL
Johnson himself isn’t just bringing the vibes, though, as he has been doing his part in their perfect run thus far. Against the FiberXers, he dropped 35 points alongside 21 rebounds, powering the solid windup to take down their foes.
The 6-foot-9 forward scored their last eight points, highlighted by two big threes which doused cold water to the other team’s fightback from 25 down.
“That counts a lot,” said Guiao when asked about their chemistry with Johnson. “The vibes, the atmosphere, just the environment that we create with the team, we always have fun practices, but we always have competitive practices.
“And Jaylen really fits us not only with his style of play, but with his personality and his character.”
And all that is thanks to the recommendation of ‘KQ’, who easily connected with the Elasto Painters through assistant coach Caloy Garcia, who was one of his mentors during his time with De La Salle University in the UAAP.
“We were in practice in South Korea, KQ called and with him on the phone,” said Johnson while pointing to Guiao as they graced the postgame presser.
“And from there, like I said, it’s been a great day ever since. Shout-out KQ, for winning Rookie of the Year also.”
#WATCH: HANGGANG SA SINESWERTE, WE’LL TAKE THE WINS 🏀
Yeng Guiao and Jaylen Johnson share their thoughts on Rain or Shine’s escape of Converge to take their 6th win in the #PBA50 Commissioner’s Cup#ReadMore 👉 https://t.co/Kbb4AbJym3
📹@justinebacnis /Tiebreaker Times pic.twitter.com/xiafjsS5Q1
— Tiebreaker Times (@tiebreakertimes) April 10, 2026
