George King and Sedrick Barefield were playing for different squads in college in the US. They found themselves suiting up for the same team in Blackwater in the PBA Season 49 Governors' Cup.
In a twist of fate, former college rivals George King and Sedrick Barefield found themselves on the same side of the court in the PBA.
The duo, who once competed against each other in the Pac-12 in the US, are now teaming up to help steer Blackwater to success in the ongoing Governors' Cup.
King joined the Bossing four games into the conference as a replacement to original import Ricky Ledo, sparking and sustaining the squad's turnaround from a 0-3 start.
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Meanwhile, Barefield, Blackwater's No. 2 pick in the rookie draft last July, is slowly finding his bearing with the Bossing, even earning a Player of the Game honors in their second straight win against Phoenix.
“We didn’t play together; we played against each other in college, in the PAC-12,” said King, after churning out another 30-point performance in Blackwater's third consecutive triumph against NLEX last Friday, Sept. 6.
“It’s a very, very, prominent league in college. There’s a lot of NBA draft picks that come out of that league and Sed was right there, in that league," he added.
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King, a former shooting guard for the University of Colorado, only had good words to say about his foe-turned-teammate Barefield, who, for his part, used to star as a point guard for the University of Utah.
King recalled Barefield as someone who posed a problem for him and his college team.
Now donning the same colors with Barefield, King described the Blackwater rookie's skills as at par with the reinforcements in the PBA.
"I know he’s of Filipino descent, but game-wise, I mean, he’s just as good as any import here. And so, that's a luxury we have,” he said.
King pointed out the positives that Barefield contributes to the Bossing, particularly his steely response in crunch time and his aggressiveness in scoring.
“As you’ve seen, Sed is very capable of closing out games and go-getting buckets," said King.
King even went on to say that Barefield, chosen second to top pick Justin Baltazar who is yet to see action for Converge, was the best among this year's rookie class.
“I don’t know who the No. 1 pick was, but I’d be hard-pressed to believe that that person is actually better than Sedrick Barefield," he said.
Though Barefield was a former foe, King was just glad to have a familiar face in him in Blackwater.
"I’m just really happy to have a familiar face on the team," said King.
(With reports from Gillian Trinidad/One Sports)