MANILA, Philippines - For a player who once scored 111 points in a high school game, Barangay Ginebra import Denham Brown hasn’t been as prolific as advertised in three PBA games so far but Kings coach Joseph Uichico said yesterday there are “positives” in the horizon despite losing three of the last four games.
Ginebra has undergone a major facelift before and even during the Fiesta Conference, moving out Cyrus Baguio, Rich Alvarez, Doug Kramer and Billy Mamaril while welcoming back Rudy Hatfield and bringing in Yancy de Ocampo, John Ferriols, Willie Miller and Mike Cortez. The import’s slot has been a hot seat with Brown checking in after Awvee Storey and Mildon Ambres.
“We’re all right,” said Uichico. “We just can’t get going because something new comes along the way. Like Yancy arrives and we adjust. Eric (Menk) gets hurt and we adjust. A new import comes in and we adjust. Willie arrives and we adjust then Mike and we adjust all over again. Anyway, they are all positives except for Eric’s injury. Right now, when Eric will return to play is a day-to-day decision.”
Two more games are left in Ginebra’s double-round elimination schedule – Air21 this Sunday and B-Meg Derby Ace on June 23. The Kings are still in mathematical contention for the second outright semifinals berth but with a 9-7 record, can only hope for a tie and a playoff. The more realistic finish is anywhere between No. 3 and No. 5 for an outright quarterfinals berth. But there’s still a chance that Ginebra may be pulled down to play in the knockout wildcards.
From the way Brown has played, it doesn’t seem like there’s an alarm for his exit even if the Kings are 1-2 since his arrival, the only win over last-place Barako Energy Coffee. The losses were a 92-84 nail-biter to Talk ‘N’ Text and a 96-95 cliffhanger to Coca-Cola. Brown played a solid all-around game against the Tigers with 20 points, 16 rebounds and seven assists but the Kings couldn’t pull off a win despite Mark Caguioa and Miller combining for 45 points.
Brown, 27, comes with impressive credentials. He played on the University of Connecticut varsity that won the NCAA title in 2004 under coach Jim Calhoun. Brown’s collegiate teammates included future NBA cagers Ben Gordon, Emeka Okafor, Charlie Villanueva, Marcus Williams and Rudy Gay. He’s familiar with FIBA-style basketball, playing in several international competitions for Canada. For instance, he scored 29 points against the US at the World University Games and netted 25 against Brazil in the Four Nations Tournament. He even outscored national teammate Steve Nash at the 2003 Tournament of the Americas. And he was regarded as the best high school cager ever to come from Canada, overshadowing Nash, Jamaal Magloire and Todd MacCulloch.
But Brown’s claim to fame was when he hit 111 points for West Hill Collegiate High School of Toronto in a 150-58 win over the R. H. King Lions in Scarborough on Feb. 7, 2002. He knocked down 13 triples and scored 41 points in the third period alone. “Maybe 111 points doesn’t mean much in terms of the competition but to me, 111 points is still 111 points,” said Calhoun. Brown wound up his high school career averaging 30 points and six rebounds. He chose to play for Connecticut over Kansas, Virginia, Villanova, Rutgers and Boston College, among others.
Known as a long-distance shooter, Brown shot .417 from three-point range as a Connecticut freshman in 2002-03. He finished his four-year career with a .354 clip. Calhoun described Brown as “a stabilizing factor for the varsity and doesn’t have much of an ego.” In his four years with the Huskies, the team posted a combined 109-28 record and advanced to the NCAA Tournament every season.
In his last Connecticut game, Brown faced George Mason University in an NCAA Elite Eight game in March 2006. Rain Or Shine stalwarts Jai Lewis and Gabe Norwood were on the George Mason squad that eliminated top-seeded Connecticut, 86-84. Brown had 11 points on 3-of-8 field goals and 4-of-4 free throws in 24 minutes. Lewis compiled 20 points, seven rebounds and three assists in 41 minutes while Norwood went scoreless in 19 minutes.
Brown missed the chance to exact revenge on Lewis and Norwood as he arrived after Ginebra had played Rain Or Shine twice in the eliminations. There’s a possibility that Ginebra and Rain Or Shine could face off in the quarterfinals.
Brown was chosen on the second round by the Seattle SuperSonics in the 2006 NBA draft. He played two preseason games with the Sonics but never made it to the regular campaign. In Brown’s profile accessible in the internet, it was mentioned that he played 38 games for Seattle in 2006-07 but the credit should go to another Brown, Andre.