By MARK REY MONTEJO
Justin Brownlee is fully aware that he’s no longer getting any younger and soon, he knows, his prime will decline steadily until he decides to call it a day.
So while he’s still at the top his game, he wants to take every moment, every opportunity that presents itself, especially playing for top crowd-drawer Barangay Ginebra in the PBA.
The 36-year-old Brownlee, who is set to play for the Gin Kings next conference, expressed his excitement to wear his red-and-white jersey again, saying : “I can’t wait for that moment, I’ve gotten older, I’m not [a] young guy anymore. Every opportunity to play, especially for Ginebra, I’m at an age that you’ll never know. Things can happen.”
“Every opportunity I get, I’m just going to cherish it and try to make the best out of it. I can’t wait to put on the Ginebra jersey again, and not only [to] represent Ginebra, but it’s like you represent the Philippines [when you’re] playing for Ginebra,” he added.
The 6-foot-6 naturalized player will once again be a regular fixture after serving his three-month suspension as a result for testing positive to a substance while undergoing surgery to remove bone spurs in his foot last year.
As he makes his way back to the pro league, the Ginebra star didn’t forget to give flowers to Tony Bishop who filled his void as he tried to figure out what went wrong while vacationing in the US.
“I give a lot of credit to Tony Bishop. He came and played his hardest [and] he tried his best for the team,” said Brownlee.
“They got to the semifinals, even though they didn’t win a championship, I think they did great in this conference,” he added.
The Tim Cone-guided Gin Kings lost to the San Miguel Beermen in the semis.
