Whether it will be seen on the stat sheet or not, Rey Guevarra has one mission whenever he enters the floor for the Meralco Bolts: to make an invaluable impact for his team.
Now fully recovered from injury after being sidelined for an entire conference this season, Guevarra left an indelible imprint during the Bolts’ come-from-behind 106-95 victory against the San Miguel Beermen Saturday night.
Prior to the Governors’ Cup, Guevarra played only a total of five games in the 2014-2015 season while putting just above two points a game in limited minutes.
Equipped with newfound confidence as he entered the floor early, Guevarra changed the match’s complexion in his own little way.
“Excited akong makalaro ulit. Matagal ako naghintay. Gusto ko ibigay energy ko sa team lalo na pag hindi maganda nilalaro ng first grouo. Step up lang ako,” Guevarra said.
The wing man finished with 11 points on 4-for-5 field goal attempts in 19:05 minutes of play. His bounce and agility was in full display; he was clearly fresh and raring to show everyone he is still part of Meralco’s regular rotation and can be Meralco’s shock trooper.
On defense he was actively bothering passing lanes on defense and hustling for 50-50 balls to give the Bolts extra possessions, a performance that got the nod of head coach Norman Black.
“I am happy he is back. Rey got hurt with a serious injury in the first conference. He did heal up well enough to win the slam dunk contest, but we intended to get him into the lineup this conference and have playing time,” Black shared.
“Rey is a great athletic player and all he lacks is basically confidence.”
Guevarra told Tiebreaker Times that since the Bolts already have scorers, making the energy plays was his way of complementing his teammates’ play on the floor. It resulted in a plus-10 net rating even if Meralco led for only 11:33 of the entire contest.
“Yun ang kailangan namin. ‘Yung import, scorer. Si Gary (David), scorer. ‘Yun ang nakita kong pwede kong i-contribute sa team. ‘Yung hustle, ung small things kagaya ng ginagawa ni Cliff Hodge,” he said.
With his rhythm back, Guevarra is trying to take his game a notch higher, while proving observers you don’t have to put huge numbers to create impact; it starts with the little things.
“Every game, gusto ko lang mag-improve, ‘yun ang goal ko sa sarili ko.”
