He momentarily became a meme.
TNT Tropang Giga import Rondae Hollis-Jefferson went viral on Saturday for, well, a hilarious reason.
No, it wasn't because he got ejected in the third quarter for throwing the ball at Converge FiberXers' Mike Nieto after a dunk.
It was because of a photo of him trying to secure the loose ball against Schonny Winston and Kevin Racal. It showed that Winston appeared to be grabbing Hollis-Jefferson’s head instead of the ball. It was captured by the PBA's official website.
When the said photo was shown to him by his teammate Poy Erram, RHJ proved to be a good sport. Erram posted a short clip on Instagram, where RHJ simply shook his head and smiled.
“Anong F to? F1 F2 F3 or F4???” Erram, who's still recuperating from an injury, wrote in the caption. “ALL BALL REF!”
The prolific import also commented on the post, saying in jest, of course, that Winston was not going for the ball.
“@pbaconnect this don’t look like he going for the ball???” RHJ said.
To which, San Miguel Beermen star Chris Ross funnily replied: “He goin for the bald!!”
While the former NBA player got the boot early in his first game in the conference, he and the Tropang Giga got the last laugh with a 101-98 escape act against the FiberXers.
Despite his shortened minutes, Hondae-Jefferson still put up 14 points, 11 rebounds, three assists, one steal, and one block. The fit-again Jayson Castro carried the cudgels with 23 points, eight rebounds, and four dimes.
RHJ and the rest of TNT will gun for their second win in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup against top overall pick Stephen Holt and the Terrafirma Dyip on November 22.
(PM)