Russel Escoto was all smiles as he finally returned to the thick of things for the Kia Picanto after a long while, but insisted that he still has plenty of catching up to do in many aspects, particularly in terms of being in game shape.
The six-foot-six forward sat out the majority of his rookie year following an ACL tear in his left knee, which he incurred last January 2016 when Kia — then the Mahindra Floodbuster — battled the NLEX Road Warriors.
“Masaya naman sa first game,” expressed the 25-year-old after his return, which was unfortunately spoiled as the Picanto lost to the TNT Katropa, 85-90, Wednesday night. “Pero siyempre wala pa ‘kong hangin, wala pa ‘ko sa kundisyon.
“Pero wino-workout ko naman araw-araw.”
Escoto entered the game early in the first quarter, and from there, logged in a total 23 minutes and 58 seconds. The Far Eastern University product finished with five points on seven shots, five rebounds, and a steal.
“Medyo wala pa yung shooting ko,” lamented the Kapampangan cager, who averaged 8.0 points on 46.8 shooting along with 4.0 rebounds in the 10 games he suited up for the Picanto back in the 2016-17 Philippine Cup.
Asked on how he felt his left knee had fared in his comeback, Escoto said that there’s no more pain whatsoever. “Wala, okay na. ‘Di na masakit,” he said.
“Kasi isang taon na nga. Talagang pinukpok ko sarili ko para di na maulit, para lumakas.”
It wasn’t the return he had wished for, as it ended in a defeat. Despite that, Escoto still saw flashes of positives in Wednesday night’s game, primarily lauding the way Kia have been playing as a single unit.
“We play as a team now. ‘Di na masyadong bwakawan,” he said, as Kia had 19 assists in the contest — four more than what TNT had made. “Sana ma-continue namin yung pagiging team namin, through offense and defense.”
And along with his hopes for the struggling Picanto to continue their collective efforts on a nightly basis comes his personal wish: avoiding major injuries that will force him to the sidelines for a long period of time.
“Sana ‘di na ko mapilay.”
