PBA: Tim Cone says Jeremiah Gray reminds him of Kenneth Duremdes

MANILA, Philippines—Jeremiah Gray was Ginebra’s savior in a victory that ended NLEX’s unbeaten start in the PBA Governors’ Cup tournament at the Araneta Coliseum on Wednesday.

Tim Cone had credit for Gray, who scored 19 points, including a clutch three in the dying seconds, that gave the Gin Kings a 112-111 lead with 19 seconds left.

“Miah is going to throw a party out of this conference. Last game I thought he was brilliant but tonight, even more. He’s starting to show what he can do,” Cone said after the thrilling 114-111 win.

“He was the guy in the last two minutes who came out and kept import (Selden). He just showed what he can do.”

Gray shot an efficient 50 percent from the field, sinking seven of 14 attempts including five triples.

But Gray also picked up Selden on the defensive end, leaving the import with just three marks in the final five minutes of the game.

Cone said the hot-shooting rookie guard reminds him of PBA legend and three-point shooter Kenneth Duremdes.

“He released a shot, a beautiful pull-up. It reminds me more of Kenneth Duremdes with the kind of silky Smooth pull-up that he has. He has the ability to shoot deep and can destroy you on the edge,” he said.

Gray, like Duremdes, plays guard and has a similar catch-and-shoot style of play.

Cone, however, admitted that Gray has struggled to get back into rhythm with the ACL injury he suffered in 2021.

The Commissioner’s Cup, however, became Gray’s way back to confidence in his basketball abilities.

“He had a long ACL injury, more than a year. Usually, even when you come back, it takes months to get comfortable after the injury, get the game and confidence back. The last conference gave him the opportunity to come back slowly,” explained Cone.

The 6-foot-5 shooter played only a minimal role for the past conference champions with 4.5 points and 2.4 rebounds per night.

But now, Gray is posting a norm of 13 markers, 5.5 boards and 3.5 dimes per ball.

After ending the Road Warriors’ winning streak, Ginebra will take on Northport at the Mall of Asia Arena on Friday.

RELATED STORY

Read Next

For suggestions, complaints, or questions, please contact us.