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| Jericho Cruz may be too passionate on the court, which many fans think could be cocky enough, but he says he is not like that when at home. PBA Images (file photo) |
MANILA--When reporters covering the PBA beat posted their videos and write-ups of San Miguel winger Jericho Cruz's reaction to TNT team manager Jojo Lastimosa's accusations of showboating during Game 4 of the PBA Philippine Cup Finals in their publications' respective social media accounts, they quickly became the hottest topic for the past few days, all the more that with a two-day break, PBA fans can just skim through the reports again while waiting for Game 5.
For one, Dugout Philippines' video posting of the Cruz interview became the first to breach one million views on TikTok while also gaining more than 400,000 views on Facebook and a couple of thousand more on YouTube.
However, most of the comments in the social media threads would bear the word "mayabang" or a synonym of it, with some claiming to be Beermen fans themselves vouching that Cruz is really a boastful guy.
When Dugout Philippines asked the Guam international about his reaction when reading the comments, he said that he respects what the PBA fans have thought of him.
"Alam naman ng mga tao na close sa akin kung ano ugali ko dahil siguro nagdala ng emotion sa court na nagge-gesture ako ng mga ganun, pero opinyon nila yun. I respect their opinion at kung ano ang sasabihin nila sa akin, pero at the end of the day, hindi naman nila ako kilala kung ano akong tao sa labas," Cruz said.
One thing he did not like, though, was when his wife Mosh was dragged into the conversation with one comment at another publication even wishing ill will for her pregnancy.
"Syempre pag sa asawa, ibang story na yun," Cruz further said.
While fans can claim all they want about who Jericho Cruz is during the games, Cruz himself, one of the standout players right now for SMB in the championship series, said that he is actually way out of his playing self when he is at home.
"Tahimik lang at medyo tamad. Sa bahay lang ako palagi with my family and kids tsaka mga ibang kaibigan. Hindi ako masyadong lumalabas. Chill lang. Parang opposite side ng basketball self ko," Cruz further said.
How does he transition from being the passionate guy on the court to the "chill" guy off of it?
"Sa akin kasi, parang ibang tao pag sa laro, pero at the end of the day, it's just basketball lang naman," Cruz answered.
For one, he acknowledged the Tropang 5G's Game 5 win on Wednesday night at the Smart Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City that kept them alive in the finals.
"Eto nga, nanalo yung Talk 'N Text. Respect sa kanila. Babawi na lang kami. Ganun ang basketball eh," said Cruz, who had another solid outing for the Beermen with 20 points and four rebounds to lead them.
However, he was a far cry from his Game 4 self in terms of outside shooting, only making 1-for-5 from three-point range, although he shot a four-pointer to end the third.
When asked if he is ready to patch things up with Lastimosa after the Game 4 drama, Cruz said, "Wala namang problema sa akin. Wala naman akong problema sa kanya, pero after na ng finals siguro. Focus muna kami."
Cruz and the rest of the SMB squad have another chance to close it out in Game 6 on Friday night at the PhilSports Arena in Pasig.
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