Bobby Ray Parks, Jr. immediately made an impact on the Blackwater Elite, leading the team to three straight victories to jumpstart their PBA Commissioner’s Cup campaign.
The second overall pick in the 2018 PBA Draft finally made his highly-awaited league debut. In a span of a week, he averaged 23.7 points, 5.3 rebounds, 3.0 assists, and 2.3 steals in three games – all victories by the fast-starting Elite.
The numbers speak volumes for the talented 26-year-old guard out of National University, who copped his very first PBA Press Corps-Cignal Player of the Week honor for the period May 19- 26.
The 6-foot-4 Parks bested NorthPort’s Sean Anthony and Anthony Semerad for the weekly citation, as he also submitted a high 37-percent shooting from three-point range and 82-percent from the foul line.
The Blackwater rookie suited up in his first PBA game during the conference opener on May 19 against Meralco. He quickly made his presence felt, scoring 20 points and grabbing eight rebounds in a 94-91 overtime win.
Five days later, Parks proved his first game was no fluke. He took charge in the extra period as the Elite made it back-to-back wins by turning back defending champion Barangay Ginebra, 108-107.
The son of the late great PBA import Bobby Parks scattered 28 points, including 10 in overtime, capped by two three-pointers that allowed the Elite to take control of the game for good.
Parks capped the winning stretch by coming through with 23 points, five rebounds, and five assists in a 118-110 Blackwater win over the Columbian Dyip.
Parks’s streak of 20 points or more in his first three games made him the first rookie in 22 years to achieve the feat since top pick Andy Seigle did it with Mobiline in 1997, as per PBA chief statistician Fidel Mangonon III.
