Watson relishing chance to lead Beermen to PBA grand slam

MANILA, Philippines – Terrence Watson, snubbed for years by PBA teams, is determined to make the most of the opportunity now that he’s finally able to bring his stuffs in the local pro league.

A winner in many leagues he has been to, Watson hopes to carry his winning ways with the San Miguel Beermen that he’s raring to help achieve a grand slam.

“They finally gave me a shot. I know they’re going for a grand slam, and I’m happy they brought me here to be a part of it,” said the Ball State alum.

“I’ve been studying, wanting to play in this league for the past four years, and every team I think kind of passed up on me,” said Watson of the situation making him eager to provide the Beermen the boost they need in their grand slam drive.

Watson turned in a solid PBA debut with 28 points and 17 rebounds, helping the Beermen stop the Barangay Ginebra Kings, 107-103, Sunday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

San Miguel coach Leo Austria liked what he saw in Watson, their third import in the PBA Governors Cup after Wendell McKines and Terik Bridgeman.

“We’re after a Top Four finish (in the elims). It looks achievable now,” said Austria, convinced they finally got the import that can help them get a good shot at completing a Triple Crown.

“He’s fresh from the Israel league where he won the championship. Anywhere he’s been, the lowest finish he got was runner-up,” said Austria, underscoring Watson’s record as a winner.

Austria also marveled at Watson’s physical upside.

“He’s like a seven-footer with his long reach. His reach is longer than that of Yancy de Ocampo,” said Austria.

With their back-to-back wins over Rain or Shine and Ginebra, the Beermen are now tied with TNT KaTropa at fourth place with their identical 5-3 win-loss slates.

 The Beermen pursue a Top Four finish and its reward of a twice-to-beat advantage in the quarterfinals in playing their last three games versus the Kia Picanto, the Phoenix Fuel Masters and the Meralco Bolts.

Watson has high hopes of winning a PBA championship as he’s impressed with his local teammates.

He particularly mentioned June Mar Fajardo, Alex Cabagnot and Chris Ross as the teammates that made things easier for him in his PBA debut.

“I had like three days to prepare, but when you’re playing with guys like that, those types of guys made it just really easy for me,” he said.