By REYNALD MAGALLON
Barangay Ginebra high-flying forward Jamie Malonzo will be out for six to eight weeks after sustaining a calf tear in his left leg in the Kings’ 95-88 victory over the NorthPort Batang Pier on Sunday, April 14.
Ginebra coach Tim Cone confirmed the severity of the injury following the result of the Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) test on Wednesday, April 17.
“Initial prognosis is calf tear, six to eight weeks before he can return to the lineup,” said Cone in a brief text message.
Malonzo went down with the injury in the final two seconds of the contest when he fell on his own while seemingly trying to go for a dunk to punctuate the win. The 27-year-old forward described the injury as it felt ‘someone kicked him’ on the legs.
Although the injury would put Malonzo’s availability for the rest of the season in question, it was some sort of good news for Ginebra which was actually bracing for the worst-case scenario.
Malonzo was initially feared to have suffered an Achilles tear which would have sidelined him for a longer period of time.
Still, it was a huge blow for the Kings who are only getting their bearings going in the all-Filipino conference after picking up their second straight victory for the solo fourth in the standings with a 5-3 slate.
Worse, Ginebra also got thinner on its wingman rotation with Malonzo’s running mate Jeremiah Grey also yet to recover from a knee injury he suffered during the PBA on Tour.
Malonzo’s place, for one, would be a huge hole to fill especially after averaging 14.1 points, 7.1 rebounds, and 3.3 assists per game.
