Arcee Cua said Ginebra’s medical team only did half the job on Justin Brownlee’s right thumb. The rest of was all Brownlee and his never-say-die spirit.
It’s a miracle Ginebra resident import Justin Brownlee even managed to finish the best-of-seven PBA Season 49 Commissioner’s Cup Finals against TNT that went the distance.
Just ask Gin Kings physical therapist Arcee Cua, who was credited for doing a great job on the dislocated right thumb injury that Brownlee suffered in Game 3.
“For me, it’s a miracle talaga. It was my first time to encounter 'yong ganoong injury," Cua told One Sports.
"Minsan mga na-jam lang na finger. Madali lang 'yon, eh. With him, walang kasiguradhang maghu-hold 'yong thumb niya doon sa tape."
[ALSO READ: PBA: Why did TNT not foul Justin Brownlee in last ball of Game 7 OT? Chot Reyes explains]
Asked about the extent of the injury, Cua had reasons to believe there was ligament damage.
“At that night, going for the ball, natukod niya 'yong thumb niya, na-dislocate. I was able to reduce it. Meaning, parang ni-relocate ko, but at that night, hindi 'yon stable. So every time na i-e-extend niya ang thumb niya, talagang lumilihis, bumabagsak,” said Cua, who leads Ginebra’s medical team.
“That’s when we knew na kailangan namin siyang dalhin sa emergency room to rule out ang mga fracture. But I knew there and then na baka may ligament damage talaga kasi nga hindi nagpu-fall doon sa joint."
Ginebra physical therapist Arcee Cua attends to Justin Brownlee's dislocated right thumb in Game 3 of the PBA Season 49 Commissioner's Cup Finals last March 19. | Photo (c) RM Chua/One Sports
Cua and his team did a fantastic job of taping the thumb up to hold it together, and Brownlee went on to play the rest of what turned out to be a gruelling series as if nothing happened.
At one point, Ginebra even held a 3-2 advantage in the series before the Tropang Giga ultimately snared the trophy in an 87-83 overtime win in Game 7 on Friday, March 28.
Cua, though, refuses to hog the credit, saying it was all Brownlee.
Asked if Ginebra's never-say-die spirit had something to do with it, Cua answered in the affirmative.
“Oo. Para sa'kin kasi, 50 percent lang 'yong sa'min. Fifty percent pa rin 'yong tapang ng player,” said Cua.
“Players like Justin, they make it easier for us to do our job. Kasi kung hindi siya fighter, wala rin. 'Hindi rin magwu-work. All credit to him.”
[WATCH: TNT outlasts Ginebra in OT of epic Game 7 Finals | PBA Fantastic Finish]
When asked what’s next for JB, Cua said they have an appointment with a hand specialist on April 4. Only then will they know whether or not the beloved naturalized Filipino would need a surgery.
Cua is confident Brownlee will recover in time for Gilas Pilipinas’ FIBA Asia Cup campaign in Saudi Arabia this August.