A good friend does not leave his pal behind.
That is what Raymar Jose realized after he was slapped with a PHP 20,000 tab by the Philippine Basketball Association last Monday for an incident that happened last Saturday during the Blackwater Elite’s 89-127 loss to the TNT Katropa.
The 6-foot-4 forward got ejected with 8:45 remaining in the fourth quarter when he tossed the ball to TNT guard Roger Pogoy, who failed to catch the ball. Instead, it smacked him on the jaw.
The PBA’s ruling is that a player will automatically be sent out once he tosses the ball towards an opposing player – whether intentional or not – as it might spark any untoward incident.
That is why the league slapped the sophomore was slapped with a fine.
Fortunately, though, Pogoy stepped up to pay half of it.
“Hindi naman kasalanan ni Toto yun kasi biruan lang namin yun,” said Pogoy, Jose’s close friend since their days in Far Eastern University.
“Kaso sa PBA bawal talaga yun kaya nakihati ako kasi biruan naming dalawa yun.”
Jose is grateful that Pogoy shouldered the other half of the bill, expressing that though they have been opponents in the court for the last two years, their bond remains.
“Nagpasalamat ako sa kanya na hindi niya ako pinabayaan sa ere.
“Sobrang kulit talaga namin noon dumating pa nga sa point na pinaghiwalay na kami ni Coach Nash [Racela] dahil sa sobrang kulit namin,” shared Jose. “Sobrang comfortable at close namin kaya kami ganiyan magkulitan.
“Pero at the end of the day rules are rules talaga.”
