George King only had a day to practice and familiarize himself with Blackwater’s system.
But when the replacement import finally got his chance to show what he could bring for the Bossing, he delivered a king-size performance as if he’d been with the squad for a long time.
King’s arrival breathed life into Blackwater, ending a three-game slump with a huge upset over no less than title favorite Barangay Ginebra San Miguel, 95-88, for the squad’s first win in Group B of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Governors’ Cup.
The 30-year-old King made a stunning introduction with 33 points off a 12-of-23 field goal shooting and grabbed 19 rebounds on top of four assists.
And he did it in a short amount of time.
“The offense that we have, I really like it a lot,” said King, who took the spot of underperforming Ricky Ledo.
“I’m very familiar with it. I’ve run similar stuff in the past. I’m familiar with that.”
The victory not only took the monkey off the back of Blackwater but also ended the franchise’s nine-game head-to-head losing skid to Ginebra since its last win over the Gin Kings back on 24 May 2019.
King was just overwhelmed by the magnitude of the win for the Bossing, who in the previous three matches looked ready to push the panic button in the season-opening tournament.
“I didn’t know (it has been) five years since we’ve beaten them. To be part of that, it feels really good, especially at this point of my career. I’m really happy to be here. I wish I was here years ago,” King said.
King, a second round pick in the National Basketball Association (NBA) and has an impressive resume with stints in Italy, Australia, Poland, Germany and Israel, was tapped after Ledo underwhelmed in the Bossing’s first two games.
Blackwater was forced to play all-Filipino in a rout at the hands of San Miguel Beer last week.
King wasn’t the Bossing’s first choice to take over Ledo’s spot but fate would have him take the job after former NLEX and San Miguel reinforcement Cameron Clark pulled out at the last minute due to a family emergency.
It turned out perfect for Blackwater.
“Things happen for a reason,” Bossing coach Jeff Cariaso said.
“Sometimes, things don’t work out with other people and it becomes a blessing to someone else.”
For King, playing under Cariaso’s system feels just right.
“It really just fits like a glove,” he said.
“Our offense, our coaches are really easygoing. They really made it simple for me, which took a lot of pressure off me as well. It just works.”