Unlike the last time where Paul Lee rushed his return to the hardcourt following an injury, he took a more patient approach this time before suiting up again for the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters.
Lee missed the Philippine Cup elimination round due to a knee injury and returned in the semifinals. However, he re-injured the same knee which required him to sit out for about six more weeks.
“Pilit talaga yun pero wala na talaga tayong magagawa, kailangan na rin kasi maglaro noong time na yun,” Lee said of the recovery during the Philippine Cup.
The backcourt general has learned his lesson, and conditioned himself to be patient before plunging back to action.
“Siyempre lesson learned. Bakit mo gagawin ulit yung nakasama sa iyo ng una. Kailangan maging maingat ka na rin dahil hindi talaga maganda yung kalalabasan kapag naulit,” Lee shared.
Lee made his Commissioner’s Cup debut Friday, scoring three points and dishing out two assists. He was 1-for-9 from the field in 12 minutes of play. Even so, Rain or Shine defeated San Miguel, 108-105.
While the performance wasn’t impressive at all, Lee is more satisfied this time because he knows he has the greenlight to play already.
“Masarap, siyempre na-feel ko na naman yung pressure sa loob ng court, (yung) up and down. It’s a good game for us,” he said.
Lee, who returned to full contact practice Monday, added he does not feel any pain after the game, unlike during the Philippine Cup.
“Kung ano yung ginagawa ko dati, mas okay na ako. Cleared na yung isip ko, wala na akong nararamdaman (masakit) after the game. Before, dun ko nararamdaman may masakit after the game pero ngayoh, all good, maganda ang pahinga ko,” he said,
Asked about how much time he thinks he will need to return to top form, Lee said he just needs more time with the team.
“Sa akin, I need to get my timing pa siguro. Ngayon, nakukuha ko yung pagtakbo ko, yung full speed, at medyo mabilis naman sa pagrecover. Yung timing lang talaga sa depensa, sa opensa, kailangan ko lang more practice pa,” he said.
“Hindi naman siguro ganoong katagal. First game ko ulit, mabigat pa yung kalaban so, unti-unti, bigla na lang siguro ulit lalabas yan. At least I have more time to practice with the team before our next game ulit, so malaking bagay rin yun para sa akin.”
