Scottie Thompson gave another reminder that he remains the guy after powering Ginebra to a 2-1 lead in their PBA Season 50 Commissioner’s Cup best-of-7 semifinal battle against Rain or Shine on Sunday night.
Much of the talk entering the Final Four was on BPC frontrunner RJ Abarrientos as well as the other team’s crop of guards led by Adrian Nocum. But the 2022 MVP showed why he should never be left out of any discussion, following a noteworthy performance that let the crowd darlings take control of the series with back-to-back wins.
The 32-year-old finished with 25 points, scoring 10 of his output in the third quarter to lead the breakaway. And he displayed assertiveness at a time when Justin Brownlee and RJ Abarrientos were still finding their rhythm.
It was also an efficient night for the Davao del Sur-native as he shot 9-of-13 from the field, including 5-of-8 from three-point distance. He also collected seven rebounds, two assists, three steals, and a block.
(C) PBA Images
“Honestly, I don’t know what to say. Just truly overwhelmed and blessed sa mga gaung sitwasyon,” said Thompson, ever humble, when asked how it felt to prove that he’s still the star that he’s always been.
But while he offered little, Coach Tim Cone, as always, had a lot to say about his long-time guard. He expressed amazement with the kind of work ethic and consistency he’s been seeing since drafting Thompson at fifth overall back in 2015.
“There’s nobody better than a guy who comes out and does his job literally every game, and I tell you, he does it every practice, too. He does the stuff no one else wants to do, and it’s just amazing to watch that,” he said.
“For 10 years, I’ve been able to watch him day in and day out,” the league’s winningest mentor added, surprised to realize that he’s been with Thompson for that long.
“It’s an amazing thing. He just comes to work every day, every game.”
Thompson even deflected the credit to his teammates when asked about his solid play, in which he deservingly earned Player of the Game honors, as his efforts helped Ginebra neutralize their gung-ho foes again.
“I think ‘yung flow ng offense namin, ano. We’re passing the ball well, and we move without the ball. It happened na maraming na-open, especially me,” he said.
“All credit din sa system, and sa teammates ko; we really find each other.”
