Head coach Yeng Guiao is pinning his hopes on import DaJuan Summers, who will beef up Rain or Shine in the Philippine Basketball Association Commissioner’s Cup starting 5 November.
“He’s fundamentally sound. His decision-making is so good. He doesn’t panic. He has a good outside shot and a solid post move as well,” Guiao said.
“He’s definitely a great fit for us.”
Summers, who played for New Orleans, Detroit Pistons and the Los Angeles Clippers in the National Basketball Association, also powered a club in Ukraine to the championship in 2014.
Though he hasn’t set foot on Philippine soil, he played for former Gilas Pilipinas coach Rajko Toroman in Bahrain and revealed about his encounters with former PBA reinforcements.
Import problems hounded Rain or Shine in the season-ending Governors’ Cup, changing imports three times during the Elasto Painters’ forgettable stint.
They first brought in Michael Qualls, who previously played for NorthPort, but was later replaced by Greg Smith.
Smith only lasted two games as he injured his hamstring and had to be replaced by Jordan Tolbert.
But Tolbert failed to see action as he was measured over the 6-foot-6 height limit and the team went on to play without the reinforcement and got booted out early in the tournament.
This time, the squad is keeping its fingers crossed that Summers would turn out to be a gamechanger.
In 2018, Summers reinforced Korean team SK Knights in the FIBA Asia Champions Cup and cracked the league’s first team at the end of the tournament.
Just this year, he had a productive stint in Lebanon while playing for Homentmen where he averaged 28.4 points and 16 rebounds per game.
