His return was colorful, to say the least.
Meralco Bolts guard Chris Banchero was hot when they defeated the TNT Tropang Giga on Sunday at the Philsports Arena, 109-95.
You can interpret the first five words of that sentence in three different ways. One, Banchero was hot, as always, being a good-looking guy and all. Two, Banchero, who was previously out for five weeks due to a hamstring injury, was hot because he dropped 18 points off the bench in his first appearance in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup. Thirdly, Banchero was hot since he had an altercation with TNT super import Rondae Hollis-Jefferson.
Amid their heated verbal exchange in the fourth quarter, the former NBA player even shoved the Fil-Italian guard quite forcefully. Thankfully, the two got separated before the situation escalated.
During the postgame press conference, Banchero was asked if he could share what was said during his spat with Hollis-Jefferson, who exploded for 47 points. He remained tight-lipped about it, following an unwritten rule.
“No, that was on the floor only, you don’t bring that out,” the 34-year-old combo guard said.
For Banchero, the incident was just a part of the game, especially when highly competitive individuals are involved and the match is at its most intense moments.
“(We’re) just going back and forth, he’s (Hollis-Jefferson) tough. It is what it is,” said the nine-year PBA veteran.
Meralco is currently in a three-way tie for second place, along with the Barangay Ginebra San Miguel and the Phoenix Fuel Masters with identical 3-1 records.
The Bolts will hope for Banchero to provide offensive spark anew as they take on the NLEX Road Warriors on December 3.
(PM)